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OLD TIMES. 




fashions For l]9J 



OLD TIMES 

a picture of Social Xife at tbc j£tto of 
tbc lEioibteentb Century 



COLLECTED, AND ILLUSTRATED FROM THE SATIRICAL 
AND OTHER SKETCHES OF THE DAY 



JOHN ASHTON 
<% 

AUTHOR OF "SOCIAL LIFE IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN ANNE' 
ETC. ETC. 



With Eighty-eight Illustrations 



London: 
J.C. Nimmo 

1885 
Detroit: Reissued by Singing Tree Press, Book Tower, 1969 



D/ : 



Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 67-23944 




PREFACE. 




F the period of which this book treats, there have 
been political histories, and scurrilous books 
written anent the Royal Family, ad nauseam : 
and the Diaries which have been published, bearing on 
this time, deal only with the acts, and sayings, of the 
higher classes — leaving the life of the vastly greater 
proportion of the population- — the middle classes — un- 
touched* No better source of information as to their 
mode of living, their amusements, the tattle, and passing 
follies of the times, can possibly be found, than in the 
Newspapers of the day ; and I selected the commence- 
ment of the Times, i Jan. 1788, as the starting point of 
a picture of the Social Life at the end of the Eighteenth 
Century. 

The copies of the Times, however, are very imperfect, 
— nay, in some years, totally missing — until 1793 -1794 
— from which date they are perfect ; so that, when any- 
thing noteworthy occurred, I have drawn from another 
source ; and, to establish the undoubted authenticity of 
each quotation, I have given the title of the Newspaper, 
with its date. 



vi Preface. 

The daily Newspapers of those times were totally 
different to those to which we are accustomed. The 
absence of Railways, Steamships, and Electric Tele- 
graphs, combined with a very high rate of Postage, pre- 
vented the publication of all News, either from foreign or 
provincial sources, except it were of real importance ; and, 
as the daily sheets must be filled, it followed, as a matter 
of course, that a substitute was found in detailing the 
social life of the Metropolis— and the daily Newspapers, 
which now give us the latest news from all parts of the 
globe— had to be filled with social paragraphs, anecdotal, 
satirical, or otherwise. They were as open to correction, 
or contradiction, then, as now ; so that we may put 
trust in them ; and when these paragraphs are collected, 
and somewhat classified, they afford a view of the daily 
life of the period, such as is utterly unattainable else- 
where. This collection must, of necessity, be valuable to 
the student of those times, besides being of great interest 
to the general reader. 

The difficulty of obtaining contemporary illustrations, 
fitted for this work, from books, or pictures, has com- 
pelled me to draw freely on the satirical prints of the 
period — which are abundant, and perfectly well suited to 
the purpose, if the reader will only bear in mind, that 
they are sometimes a little exaggerated. Still, on the 
whole, they so truthfully represent the manners, costume, 
&c, of the age, that they could not be omitted ; and that 
they are faithful reproductions of the originals, I can 
guarantee, for I drew them all myself. 

JOHN ASHTON. 




CONTENTS. 



INTRODUCTION . 










I 


men's DRESS 










5* 


women's DRESS . 










69 


NAVY AND ARMY 










80 


SOCIAL ECONOMY 










114 


GAMING, ETC. 










166 


THE THEATRE . 










187 


OPERA AND BALLET . 










204 


MASQUERADES, CONCERTS, ETC. 










215 


MONETARY. 










233 


LAW AND POLICE 










243 


POLITICAL .... 










280 


ROYALTY .... 










• 293 


VARIETIES .... 










297 




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



FASHIONS FOR 1797 ..... 


Frontispiece 




AT PACK 


EDMUND BURKK ....... 




16 


THE PRINCE'S BOW ...... 




50 


TIGHT-LACING, 1788 ...... 




51 


MACARONIS, 1789 ....... 




52 


A JESSAMY, 1790 ....... 




54 


A CHOICE SPIRIT— A BUCK ...... 




55 


A SMART, 1790 ....... 




56 


A RAIN-BEAU ....... 




57 


JIMMY LINCUM FEADLE, 1791 ..... 




58 


A SCARAMOUCH ....... 




59 


APING THE FRENCHM AN ...... 




62 


NECK OR NOTHING— A BACK VIEW OF THE CAPE, 1792 




64 


A SPENCER AND A THREAD PAPER, 1792 




65 


"A JEAN DE BRY" (MR. SKEFFINGTON) .... 




66 


FRENCH TAILOR FITTING JOHN BULL WITH A "JEAN DE BR^ 


" 


67 


A COTILLION, 1788 ....... 




70 


FASHIONS FOR 1788 ...... 




70 


INDOOR COSTUMES, 1788 ...... 




70 


THE DUCHESS OF YORK ...... 




70 


THE DUCHESS ....... 




70 



X 



List of Ilhistrations. 



FRAILTIES OF FASHION, 1793 ..... 

THE HEIGHT OF FASHION, 1793 ..... 

THE TOILETTE. NO. I ...... 

THE TOILETTE, NO. 1 ...... 

THE TOILETTE, NO. 3 ...... 

A SCARECROW, 1793 ...... 

"SHEPHERDS! I HAVE LOST MY WAIST", 1794 . 
FOLLOWING THE FASHION, "ST. JAMES'S GIVING THE TON" 
FOLLOWING THE FASHION, "CHEAPSIDE APING THE MODE" 
A LAD'S' PU1TING ON HER GAP, 1795 .... 

CROPS . . . . . 

CHARACTERS IN HIGH LIFE ..... 

A MODERN BELLE GOING TO THE ROOMS OR BALLS, 1790 

WAGGONER'S FROCK, OR NO BODYS OF 1795 

THE FASHION, DEC. 1795 ..... 

FASHIONABLE MODEM V, 1790 ..... 

HIGH CHANGE IN BOND STREET, 1790 

MY POLL, AND MY PARTNER JOE, 17% 

BRITISH LADIES PATRIOTIC PRESENTS TO THE ARMY, 1793 

KIDNAPPING, OR A DISGRACE TO OLD ENGLAND 

MODERN MODI. OF BEATING UP FOR VOLUNTEERS . 

HEROES RECRUITING AT K ELS FYS, 1797 

INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. I . 

INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. 2. SIR F. JOHNSTON AND LADY, 

LORD BATHURST, MAJOR TOPHAM 
INSTALLATION SUPPER. NO. 3, SIR GEORGE YOUNG AND LADY 
INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. 1, LORD AMHERST 
INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. 5. LORD SANDWICH, DR. BRII.I AND 

DR. PAIR ...... 



PAGE 
70 

70 

70 

70 

70 

72 

72 

72 

72 

74 

74 

74 

74 

70 

70 

70 

70 

HO 

94 

90 
104 
108 
III 

114 
I 10 

I Hi 

I IS 



List of Illustrations. 



XI 



THE ASSESSED TAXES TAKING THEIR DEPARTURE . 
JOHN BULL AND THE INCOME TAX 
A PRETTY BAR MAID ..... 

A LADY AT A CARD PARTY WHO DOES NOT PLAY, 1788 
GAMBLING, 1792 ..... 
A KICK UP AT A HAZARD TABLE, NO. 1, 1790 . 
DO. NO. 2, 1790 . 

modern hospitality .... 

dividing the spoil, st. james's, 1796 
do. st. giles's. 1796 

faro's daughters .... 

discipline a la kenyon, 1797 

the theatre ..... 

mackl1n as "shylock '— holman as 'richard'' 

pope as "hotspur"— johnstone as "apollo" 

quick as "scrub"— ryder as "falstai i " 

kemble as "hamlet"— kemble as "lear" 

mrs. bellamy— mrs. abington as "lappet" 

mrs. s1ddons as "andromache"— mrs. jordan as "viola 

mrs. b1ll1ngton as "rosetta"— mrs. martyr as 

"euphrosyne" ...... 

miss brunton as "juliet"— miss field as "ariel" 
at the opera— at church ..... 

the celebrated mademoiselle — g— m— rd 
ballet at the. king's theatre— pantheon, 1791 
the operatical finale to the ballet of "alon/o 

E CARO" ....... 

MDLLE PARISOT ....... 

DURHAM MUSTARD TOO POWERFUL FOR ITALIAN CAPERS, 1798 
ECCLESIASTICAL SCRUTINY, OR THE DURHAM INQUEST ON DUTY, 

1798 

MADAME. CORNEL YS ....... 



pagi; 
132 

134 

136 

166 

168 

170 

172 

174 

176 

178 

180 

184 

188 

190 

192 

194 

194 

196 

198 

200 
202 
204 
205 
206 

208 
210 
212 

214 
216 



Xll 



List of Illustrations. 



I HE FEMALE COTERIE 

A COUMRV CONCERT, OK AN EVENING'S K 

SUSSEX ..... 
SAVOYARDS OK FASHION, 1 799 . 
SEEN HOME BY I 111. WATCH, 1792 
THE MONSTER CUTTING A LADY, 1790 
KENWICK WILLIAMS, 1790 
PROTECTION FROM, THE MONSTER . 
BOXING MADE EASY, OR HUMPHREYS lilVIN( 
JEFFREY DUNSTAN— ORDINARY COSTUME 
SIR JEFFREY DUNSTAN— COURT DRESS 
TREATMENT OF LUNATICS 







PAGfc 

220 


TER1AINMKM IN 








224 






m 






244 




V 


*>4H 


1 




m\ 






258 


A LESSON, 


17N8 


m 

290 
292 
298 





OLD TIMES. 



LTHOUGH this book does not pretend to be a 
history of the times of which it treats, still, it 
will materially help the reader, if, at the out- 
set, some of the principal events which occurred during 
the period are succinctly narrated. 

We start with the year 1788 — and one of the first 
items of importance is the founding of the colony of 
New South Wales ; for Captain Phillips, on 28th January, 
landed the first batch of convicts, consisting of 561 men, 
192 women, and 18 children, also a military force of 212 
men. As soon as they were all on shore, Phillips 
ordered the King's Commission to be read, and assumed 
the office of Governor. Such was the modest foundation 
of our great Australian Empire. On the same day at 
home, Lord George Gordon, of Protestant rioting 
memory, was brought before the judges of the King's 
Bench, to receive sentence on two libels, one against the 
Queen of France, and another on the criminal justice of 
the country. His sentence for the former, was three 
years' imprisonment, for the latter, two years, to pay a 



2 Old Times. [1788. 

fine of £500, and find security for his good behaviour for 
fourteen years. He fled to Holland, was arrested, brought 
back, and lodged in Newgate. He did not live to regain 
his liberty, but death set him free 1st November 1793. 

An all-absorbing topic of conversation in this year 
was the trial of Warren Hastings, for his conduct whilst 
Governor-General of Bengal. The trial commenced on 
the 13th of February, and it took place in Westminster 
Hall, which was fitted up with a throne and canopy, 
having the woolsack for the Lord Chancellor in front. 
On either side the throne was a private box, one for 
the use of the King, the other for the Queen : the King 
never used either throne or box, but, when he went 
to the trial, he went incognito. 

There were seats covered with green baize for the 
accommodation of members of the House of Commons, 
but all the rest of the hall was glowing with red baize. 
Boxes were also provided for the Ambassadors and Corps 
Diplomatique. The grand show commenced at eleven a.m. 
with the entrance of the committee appointed to manage the 
impeachment, all of them in full dress, followed by Burke, 
who headed the members of the House of Commons. 

Hardly had they taken their seats when a buzz of 
excitement filled the hall, for no one less than the Queen, 
attended by all her daughters, entered. She did not go 
to the royal box, but sat in part of the Duke of New- 
castle's Gallery. This attracted the attention of all, 
until the coming in of the peers, including the judges, 
and the Bishops, the string of Dukes being closed by 
the Prince of Wales (as Duke of Cornwall), and the 
Dukes of York, Gloucester, and Cumberland. Lord 
Thurlow, the Lord Chancellor, came last. The peers 
all wore their robes and collars, the robes of the royal 



1788.] Old Times. 3 

dukes being borne by pages. Then the Chancellor's 
mace-bearer cried " Oyez, Oyez, Oyez," and notified to 
all, that Warren Hastings had come to take his trial, and 
that his accusers might come forth and make good their 
charges against him. The Lord Chancellor addressed 
the prisoner, and told him to be prepared with his 
defence, to which Hastings replied, " My Lords, I am 
come to this high tribunal equally impressed with a con- 
fidence in my own integrity and in the justice of the 
court before which I stand." As this trial will not 
again be mentioned, I may state the fact, that it lasted 
seven years and three months, and ended in his acquittal, 
17th April 1795. 

Another remarkable event happened in this year, for 
on 31st January there died at Rome, at the age of sixty- 
seven, the young Pretender, Prince Charles Edward 
Louis Casimir Stuart, grandson of James II. ; and, with 
him, died all hope for the Jacobite party, for he left 
behind him but one natural daughter, on whom he con- 
ferred the empty title of Duchess of Albany. It is true 
that he left his pretensions to the throne of England to his 
brother, Cardinal York, but all this Prince did to claim 
regal honours was to strike a medal, on which he styled 
himself Henry the IXth. He knew there was no use 
in continuing the struggle, so accepted a pension from 
George III., which was paid him until his death. 

There is little worth chronicling until we come to the 
(to Englishmen) most painful event of the year, namely, 
the King's illness. In July his physicians remarked 
symptoms in him which gave them grave concern, but he 
visited Cheltenham, and improved in his health. In 
October, however, rumours began to get about that all 
was not well. The Morning Post of 30th October 



4 Old Times. [1788-9. 

mentions that " On 28th His Majesty complained of a 
pain in his bowels, and by the advice of his physicians, 
and the rest of His Majesty's attendants, he is not 
expected to leave Windsor for the course of a week or a 
fortnight." Next day we hear that " the chief symptom 
is said to be a swelling in the legs." Then news is 
brought, that on the 4th November he had a relapse ; on 
the 7th he is reported better, though, as a matter of fact, 
he was delirious at dinner on the 5 th. On the 9th they 
say he is better; on the 10th he is much better, and 

HOPES ARE ENTERTAINED OF HIS RECOVERY. The bulletins 

of the 1 ith are vague ; that of the 12th reports that he " was 
not better," and the newspapers of the 13th openly speak 
of a Regency. In the Morning Post of November 14th 
it plainly states that u his mental faculties were more 
deranged." Then his physicians quarrelled amongst them- 
selves as to his treatment, and wrote daily contradictory 
bulletins, until Dr. Willis took his patient under his sole 
charge, with good effect. And so ends 1788. 

1789 opens with a great frost, one of the heaviest on 
record. It commenced on the 24th November 1788, and 
continued, with one intermission (from December 24th 
to December 26th) until 13th January 1789. On 10th 
January the Thames at Irongate — which is below London 
Bridge, by the Tower, was frozen over, and several 
booths were erected on the ice. The day previously an 
ox was roasted whole, and eagerly bought by the people 
who were skating and sliding. The Annual Register 
thus describes the sight : — " The scene on the Thames 
is very entertaining ; from Putney Bridge upwards, the 
river is completely frozen over, and people walk to and 
from the different villages on the face of the deep. 



1789-] Old Times. 5 

Opposite to Windsor Street booths have been erected 
since Friday last, and a fair is kept on the river. Multi- 
tudes of people are continually passing and repassing ; 
puppet shows, roundabouts, and all the various amuse- 
ments of Bartholomew Fair are exhibited. In short, 
Putney and Fulham, from the morning dawn till the 
dusk of returning evening, is a scene of festivity and 
gaiety. On the 12th a young bear was baited on the 
ice, opposite to Redriffe (Rotherhithe), which drew multi- 
tudes, and fortunately no accident happened to interrupt 
their sport." The outward-bound vessels at Deptford 
and Gravesend cleared out with all despatch, lest they 
should be caught in the ice and detained or damaged. 

The usual royal gift of £1000 to the poor of London 
was this year not forthcoming, so the Prince of Wales 
ordered that sum to be given from his own treasury. 
He also sent large sums to the poor of Edinburgh and 
Brighton. 

A Bill to make the Prince of Wales Regent had been 
introduced in both Houses of Parliament at the latter end 
of 1788, but was negatived in each ; in the Commons by 
251 to 178. There had been great squabbling over this 
Bill, especially between the rival leaders, Fox and Pitt ; 
the former asserting that the Prince of Wales had an 
absolute right to succeed to the Regency, and the latter 
would only admit that he had an irresistible claim. 

But the King did not get better, and something must 
be done, yet it was not thought fit to invest the Prince 
of Wales with altogether regal powers : there must be 
some limitation. Therefore Pitt wrote to His Royal 
Highness, detailing the plan intended to be pursued, 
which was, that the Queen should have the care of the 
King's person, and the disposition of the royal house- 



6 Old Times. [1789- 

hold, by which means she would enjoy the patronage of 
400 places, amongst which were the offices of Lord 
Steward, Lord Chamberlain, and Master of the Horse : 
but the Prince should have no power of granting any 
office, reversion, or pension, for any other term than 
during the King's pleasure, nor might he confer any 
peerage. 

This, no doubt, was prudent, but was extremely dis- 
tasteful to the Prince, who wrote a dignified remonstrance 
to Pitt, at the end of which, however, he consented to 
accept the terms, being convinced of the evils which 
might arise were there no Regency. Fifty-five peers, 
together with the Dukes of York and Cumberland, signed 
a protest against the limitations, but the Commons cared 
but little for it. They went on with their work, and, 
on the 1 2th February, sent up the Bill to their Lordships 
for consideration ; and they were debating it when the 
proverb of " There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the 
lip" was fulfilled. On the 19th February the Lord 
Chancellor announced to the House that the physicians 
reported that the King was rapidly recovering from his 
malady. On this the House adjourned, and practically 
no work was done, either by Lords or Commons, for 
three weeks. 

On 27th February the prayer for his recovery was 
discontinued, and, in its stead, a form of prayer, and 
thanksgiving for his restoration to health, was ordered 
to be read in all churches and chapels throughout 
England and Wales. So completely had he recovered, 
that he ordered Parliament to be opened by Commission, 
which was done on 10th March. The 23rd April was 
appointed for a general thanksgiving, and his Majesty, 
accompanied by the Queen and the Royal Family, went 



1 789.] Old Times. 7 

in solemn state to Saint Paul's, to render thanks to the 
Almighty for His great mercy. 

The following account is much condensed from the 
report in the Morning Post of 24th April 1789 : — " They 
started early, for, precisely at eight o'clock in the morn- 
ing, the first carriage that led the procession reached 
St. Clement's Church in the Strand. After the usual 
state pioneers, came the members of the House of Com- 
mons, followed by the peers according to their several 
degrees, then the Archbishops, and the princes of the 
blood royal, after whom came the Prince of Wales, whose 
equipage outshone all others. Their Majesties' House- 
hold came next, and lastly their Majesties themselves. 

" The Queen seemed inexpressibly happy : the loud 
huzzas, which from every quarter rent the air, testified 
to her, that he who was dearest to her was dearest to the 
people. 

" The King, as if impressed by the weight of the 
obligation which he owed to Heaven for his recovery, 
and full of the religious solemnity with which he was 
going, publicly, to acknowledge that obligation to the 
Almighty, seemed to be unusually grave and silent ; and 
behaved, at this first appearance in public since his 
recovery, in a manner which filled the spectators with 
reverence and awe. 

" His Majesty appeared to be much reduced in point of 
size, but he looked as if in perfect health." 

It was a quarter-past three when the procession, on 
its return, reached Temple Bar, and it was noted that 
the King looked more cheerful, whilst the Queen was 
in high spirits. 

London was, of course, brilliantly illuminated at 
night. , 



8 Old Times. [1789-9°- 

This is the principal event of the year, and with it 
we will close 1789. 

As far as England, and its social economy, is con- 
cerned, 1790 is very barren. In France, there was 
the commencement of that dreadful revolution which 
terrorised all Europe, yet strangely enough all allusion 
to France was omitted in the Royal Speeches to Parlia- 
ment, either on 21st January or 26th November. 

The navy sadly wanted manning, so much so that a 
proclamation was issued for encouraging seamen, and 
landsmen, to enter themselves on board His Majesty's 
ships of war ; that officers on foreign stations should 
join their respective corps, and recalling, and prohibiting 
seamen from serving foreign princes, and states. This 
was all very well, for the fleet was in urgent need of 
men, owing to the number of ships being put in com- 
mission, and ordered to be got ready for sea with the 
greatest expedition : for instance — 
At Deptford, 3 ; 

„ Woolwich, 3 ; 

,, Chatham, 3 ; 

„ Sheerness, 3 ; 

„ Portsmouth, 10 (one 100, and another 98 guns) ; 

„ Plymouth, 7 (one 100 another 80 guns) ; 
besides others which were expected to be commissioned 
in a few days. 

Ordinary means were not sufficient to provide men, 
and resort was made to impressment, a mode of obtain- 
ing seamen which is of ancient practice. In 1378 a 
statute of 2 Richard II. speaks of it as being well 
known, and so it must have been, for the first commis- 
sion for its use was issued 29 Edward III., 1355. In 



*79°.] Old Times. g 

1 64 1, Parliament declared the practice illegal, either for 
the land or sea service ; but this has always been 
ignored when the necessity for seamen arose. It has 
been regulated by Parliament even so lately as 1835, 
when, by the statute 5 and 6 William IV., compulsory 
service is restricted tp five years. 

How should we feel if some day, in reading our 
morning paper, we should come across such a passage 
as the following : — M A very hot press took place in the 
river Thames, and at all the outports " ?— Woul4 you like 
to know what a " hot press " means ? — then learn from 
the following excerpts from the St. James's Chronicle, 
May 4-6, 1790 : — 

" The report of the number pressed in the river on 
Tuesday night was delivered to the Lords of the 
Admiralty yesterday morning, which amounted to about 
1500 taken in Wapping, and in Southwark, &c, more 
than 600; amounting in the whole to upwards of 2100 
men, besides those at the different seaport towns, re- 
ports of which were not received." 

" Four tenders went down the river yesterday morn- 
ing, crowded with impressed men, to be shipped on 
board a vessel of war lying in Long-reach, ready to re- 
ceive them. The same tenders were expected up again 
with the return of the tide, upon the same errand." 

Extract of a letter from Chatham, May 5. — "Yesterday 
morning, between six and seven o'clock, an express 
arrived from the Lords of the Admiralty to Commodore 
Pasley, at this port, containing impress warrants : accord- 
ingly, a great press commenced about twelve o'clock 
last night, both in this town, Rochester, &c. &c, and on 
the river Medway, when many persons were taken, four 
of whom were lodged in the guardhouse in the yard, and 



io Old Times. [1790-1- 

this morning sent on board the ' Scipio,' of 64 guns, 
lying as guardship at this port, and commanded by 
Commodore Pasley. A great press likewise commenced 
last night at Sheerness." 

" In consequence of the press warrants, stocks felt a 
most extraordinary depression yesterday ; the Consols 
opened at j6, and fluctuated from that price to 75^ until 
very nearly three o'clock." 

This then, was a " hot press " — but very little was 
ever said about it, except a passing notice. The im- 
pressed men themselves accepted their fate as inevi- 
table, and, according to the testimony of an old seaman 
whom I once knew (himself a pressed man), he assured 
me that, after the first shock was over, they set to work 
with a will, and did their duty as well as the volunteers. 
There were supposed to be exceptions, such as appren- 
tices, who were exempt, but I fear, when once in the 
hands of the pressgang, it was a very poor chance of 
any one's getting off. 

A social note worthy of being recorded, in this year, 
was that a man named John Frith, lieutenant of the 
second battalion of Royals, threw a stone at His Majesty's 
coach. He seems to have done no harm, and was evi- 
dently a lunatic, for no one in their senses would have 
endeavoured to injure a king who was just then in the 
zenith of his popularity. That he was insane the jury 
thought, for, on his trial for high treason on 2 1st May, 
he was acquitted as being of unsound mind, but he was 
put under safe watch and ward in Newgate, and only 
liberated on nth December 1 791, on bail being given to 
take proper care of him. 

The year 1791 is remarkable for its uneventfulness, 



i79i-] Old Times. 1 1 

nothing of national importance occurring during the twelve- 
month. Impressment still went on, as we see by the 
St. James's Chronicle, April 16-19. — " Friday night the 
press in the Thames, and on both sides the river, was 
the warmest that has been at all since press warrants 
were last issued. No fewer than eleven gallies were row- 
ing about between London Bridge and Deptford. Every 
one of His Majesty's frigates and sloops on Channel ser- 
vice, as well as those in the North Sea and on the Irish 
coast, have received orders to proceed upon the impress 
service. The smaller vessels, as soon as they have pro- 
cured forty seamen each, are to deliver them over to the 
receiving ships at Spithead and the Nore." 

In 1787 a society was formed in England having for 
its object the suppression of slavery, under the auspices 
of Granville Sharpe, Clarkson, and others, and Mr. Wil- 
berforce (by whose untiring efforts its downfall was at 
last obtained) joined it. On the 18th April 1791, the 
House of Commons resolved itself into a committee " to 
consider of the African slave trade." Wilberforce made 
an eloquent speech, in which he depicted the horrors of 
the trade. Among other barbarities he mentioned the 
whipping, and holding red-hot coals, to the mouths of 
those (in order to compel them to eat) who were 
desirous of putting an end to their existence, by starving 
themselves to death ; and, to prove the preference given 
by those unhappy creatures of death to slavery, he quoted 
part of the evidence, which told how they took every 
opportunity of leaping overboard, and that, in the agonies 
of death, when drowning, they would hold up their hands 
for joy in having escaped from their tormentors. 

He mentioned many cruelties which had passed 
unpunished, and particularly one, which was committed 



12 Old Times. [1791-2. 

by a master upon his female slave, a girl about six 
years old, by cutting her mouth from ear to ear; he 
showed how injurious the slave trade was to our mer- 
cantile navy, quoting from the muster rolls of Liverpool 
and Bristol, that in one year, out of 12,263 seamen 
employed in the slave trade, 2643 had died. 

After many other arguments, he concluded with a 
motion, "That the Chairman be directed to move for 
leave to bring in a Bill for preventing the further impor- 
tation of African negroes into the British colonies and 
plantations." 

The debate Was continued, and adjourned until the 
next day — when the battle pro slavery or its abolition 
waxed fierce ; but when it came to a decision^ the 
numbers were — for the motion, 88; against, 163 — majority 
against the abolition, 75. 

1792 opened, as we would fain have our financial 
years open now-a-days, with an increase of revenue over 
the preceding year of £300,000, and a surplus of more 
than £900,000, besides paying the annual million in 
reduction of the national debt. Pitt repealed £200,000 
of burdensome taxes, added £400,000 to the million to 
extinguish the debt, and discreetly kept the balance in 
hand for eventualities. Trade had vastly increased, as 
we may see from the following figures : — In 1783 the 
exports were valued at £14,741,000; and, in 1791* they 
had risen to £20,120,000. 

On 2nd April, the House of Commons being in Com- 
mittee, Mr. Wilberforce again brought forward the 
question of the slave trade, and, after ail eloquent 
speech, wound tip with the motion : — " That it is the 
opinion of the Committee, that the trade carried on by 



1 792.] Old Times. 13 

British subjects, for the purpose of procuring slaves from 
Africa, ought to be abolished." After a debate, Mr. Secre- 
tary Dundas moved as an amendment, to insert the word 
"gradually 1 ' immediately before the word "abolished." 

This was carried by a majority of 6S, and the motion, 
so altered, being put, the numbers were — Ayes, 230 ; 
Noes, 85 — majority for the motion, 145. The Chairman 
was then ordered to move the House for leave to bring 
in a Bill, pursuant to the said resolution. 

England could not but be affected by the French 
Revolution. At the commencement of the movement 
there was some sympathy shown by the Whigs to a 
people who were struggling to free themselves from the 
trammels of despotism, but that sympathy rapidly grew 
cold, and faded, on witnessing the excesses committed 
by the people of Paris, and some other large cities, 
until the capture, and imprisonment of the Royal family, 
turned it to absolute loathing, and hatred. 

There was great uneasiness throughout the country 
as to whether the tide of anarchy might not reach us, 
especially as numbers of fugitives were daily reaching 
our shores. Take, for example, two instances quoted in 
the Annual Register, both of the date 12th September : — 

" Southampton. — One Ayland, a fisherman of Hamble, 
a village about seven miles from Southampton, was 
fishing for lobsters on the coast of France on Thursday 
last, and had taken in about half his cargo, when he 
espied two boats full of men, seemingly in great dis- 
tress ; on which he bore down, and received them on 
board. They had swam to their boats to get away 
from the coast, and many of them were much bruised 
and pelted with stones by others on shore. They 
begged the fisherman to land them somewhere in 



14 Old Time s, [1792. 

England, to prevent their being murdered ; which he 
promised to do, and offered them subsistence till he 
had completed his lading. They represented the danger 
of being intercepted, if he did not immediately proceed 
to sea, and offered him any sum he should ask, to land 
them as soon as possible. He waived his own interest, 
set sail, and landed them at the above village ; but with 
a spirit of humanity, which does honour to human 
nature, he absolutely refused any reward whatever, 
although he had not completed his fishing, which is 
the maintenance of his family." 

" Lewes. — Upwards of 500 unfortunate emigrants 
were, last week, landed on our coast, who have had the 
fury of the elements to contend with, after escaping 
that of their countrymen. The Brighton packets, 
heavily laden with them, were driven by the winds 
far eastward off their usual track, and with difficulty 
made Hastings, Pevensey, and Eastbourne. At the 
former place, on Wednesday morning, j6, all ecclesi- 
astics, came on shore, among whom were the Bishop 
of Auvranches, the Dean of Rouen, and several other 
dignitaries. The Bishop with great difficulty escaped 
from Auvranches by the assistance of one of his grand 
vicars, who, with domestics, accompanied him to Rouen, 
where they were for some days concealed. The popu- 
lace having again discovered them, they were again 
obliged to travel on foot, in disguise, to Dieppe. They 
arrived in the night, took refuge a few hours in an 
hotel ; and, at the time appointed for the departure of 
the packet, ran to the sea side, and, it providentially 
being high water, were enabled to get out of reach of 
the rabble, who, in one minute after, pursued them to 
the shore." 



1792.] Old Times. 15 

Take again an extract or two from the St. James's 
Chronicle of 1 1 — 13th September 1792. " Between day- 
break and eight o'clock yesterday morning, thirteen 
broad-wheeled waggons, crowded with French emigrants, 
passed through the Borough. During the night, and 
the whole of yesterday forenoon, waggons, carts, and 
chaises, and carriages of almost every other description, 
continued arriving in town with emigrants, by way of 
Westminster, Blackfriars, and London Bridges." 

" It is a known fact, that upwards of forty thousand 
French men, women, and children, are at this moment 
in England : two-thirds of them of the lowest class, who, 
taking advantage of the convulsed state of their native 
country, come over under the plausible title of exiled 
aristocrats." 

" There are three powerful reasons why the very 
great number of arrivals here from France should excite 
the immediate attention of Government. One, that it 
may occasion a rapid rise in the price of provisions, 
already at a height that occasions much complaint among 
the lower orders of people. Second, lest under the 
appellation of fugitives, a multitude of insidious and evil- 
designing persons should intrude themselves, with the 
intention of raising similar disturbances in this kingdom. 
Third, lest it should be the means of introducing a great 
number of rascals, thieves, and villains, who are always 
cowards, and cannot have principle enough to take any 
side ; these, therefore, are the first to run. An inunda- 
tion of them, added to the bad among our own people, 
might not only render private property very precarious, 
but even prove dangerous to the state." 

The Government was fully alive to this great influx 
of Frenchmen, and the possible effect it might have on 



1 6 Old Times. [1792- 

the people of England ; so they introduced, and passed, 
the " Act for establishing Regulations respecting Aliens 
arriving in this kingdom, or resident therein, in certain 
cases," 33 Geo. III. cap. 4. After the preamble, the 
gist of which has been given, this Act enacts that a}} 
masters of vessels are to give to the officer of the 
Custom, at the port of arrival, a written declaration 
specifying the names, &c, of foreigners on board. All 
aliens arriving after 10th January 1793 were to give to 
the port officer of the Customs a written declaration 
of their names, rank, &c. If they failed in so doing, 
they were to depart out of the realm, or be transported 
for life. The officer of Customs had to furnish therq 
with a certificate, and, if they wished to change their 
abode, they were to have a passport, which they were to 
show, or be committed for trial. They must also depart 
from the realm when ordered by His Majesty's proclama- 
tion, &c. &c. &c. 

This was a somewhat severe ordinance, but as far as 
I know, it was never acted on, for the French emigres 
were a quiet, law-abiding people, thankful for the refuge 
they had received. It was during the debate on this 
Bill that Burke made his historical coup dc theatre, the 
dagger scene in the House of Commons. I quote from 
the St. James's Chronicle 27-29th Pecember 1 792 : — Burke 
loquitur. "It had been declared by a noble Lord (Gran- 
ville) in another place, that there were known to be nine- 
teen assassins in this country with daggers for the extir- 
pation of kings — but it had been said that nineteen were 
of no consequence ; he thought differently, for there were 
in that number seven more than necessary to destroy the 
whole Royal family ; the number to him was alarming, 
for he knew not how many apprentices those murderers 




(C>3mund Burke. 



1 792-3.] Old Times. 17 

might have, nor how many encouragers in this country ; 
the knowledge of nineteen French murderers having 
arrived, was a full justification of the present Bill. He 
thanked His Majesty's Ministers for having brought it 
forward ; it might prevent the arrival of nineteen times 
nineteen of those monsters, and it might counteract the 
intentions of that Englishman who had ordered the 
manufacture of 5000 daggers at Birmingham — how many 
for exportation, or how many for home consumption, he 
knew not. He had, however, strong reasons to believe 
that they were intended to introduce French fraternity 
into the bosoms of Englishmen — to introduce murder 
and desolation, for ' there ! there ! ' exclaimed Mr. Burke, 
throwing a dagger upon the floor of the House, ' is the 
fraternity of freedom ; that is the fraternity they wish 
to plunge into the heart of our Sovereign ; into the 
heart of every virtuous Englishman who was loyal to 
his King, or worshipped his God,' " &c. &c. 

This rodomontade was only provocative of mirth, and 
it is said that Sheridan asked — " You have thrown 
down the knife — where is the fork ? " which convulsed 
the House with laughter. 

1793 opened gloomily with the trial, sentence, and 
decapitation of Louis XVI. (sentenced 17th January, 
beheaded 21st January); and our national sympathy to- 
wards the martyred King was shown by an order for a 
general mourning, which it was hoped would be uni- 
versal. " As our Court has ordered an etiquette mourn- 
ing for Louis XVI., there can be little doubt that the 
people will, as one man, clothe themselves in a garb 
expressive of their detestation of his murtherers." 

Our relations with France had been very strained, 

B 



1 8 Old Times. [1793. 

for some time past, and war had long been expected. 
In December 1792 a proclamation had been issued, 
embodying and calling out the militia. Vessels were 
being hurriedly equipped, and commissioned, and nobody 
was surprised, when, on 1st February, Parliament re- 
ceived a message from the King, informing his people 
that M. Chauvelin had left this country, and that there 
was an urgent necessity for augmenting the sea and 
land forces. The number of French in England became 
a source of uneasiness, and an Order of Council was 
issued on 2nd February, directing all aliens, save such as 
were excepted by the Alien Act, to reside within fifty 
miles of the standard on Cornhill, and ten miles from 
the sea coasts, and dockyards. 

The French had already begun hostilities, by laying 
an embargo on all British shipping in French ports, 
and, on 5th February, we retaliated by acting in the same 
manner ; but the terms were not equal, for there were 
but six, or eight, French vessels in our ports, whilst 
it was reckoned that the French had got hold of over 
1000 of our seamen. But sailors were forthcoming to 
man the fleet, for we read, under 7th February, that 
" Upwards of 2000 sailors entered the Royal Navy last 
week." 

On nth February, the King sent the following mes- 
sage to Parliament : — 

"George R. — His Majesty thinks proper to acquaint the 
House of Commons, that the Assembly now exercising the 
powers of Government in France have, without previous 
notice, directed acts of hostility to be committed against the 
persons and property of His Majesty's subjects, in breach 
of the law of nations, and of the most positive stipula- 
tions of treaty, and have since, on the most groundless 



1 793-] Old Times. 19 

pretensions, actually declared war against His Majesty 
and the United Provinces ; under the circumstances of 
this wanton and unprovoked aggression, His Majesty 
has taken the necessary steps to maintain the honour of 
his Crown, and to vindicate the rights of his people ; 
and His Majesty relies with confidence on the firm and 
effectual support of the House of Commons, and on the 
zealous exertions of a brave and loyal people, in prose- 
cuting a just and necessary war, and endeavouring, under 
the blessing of Providence, to oppose an effectual barrier 
to the farther progress of a system which strikes at the 
security and peace of all independent nations, and is pur- 
sued in open defiance of every principle of moderation, good 
faith, humanity, and justice. 

" In a cause of such general concern, His Majesty has 
every reason to hope for the cordial co-operation of 
those Powers who are united with His Majesty by the 
ties of alliance, or who feel an interest in preventing the 
extension of anarchy and confusion, and in contributing 
to the security and tranquillity of Europe. G. R." 

The Government was determined to do nothing by 
halves, and, as the law of nations had not yet condemned 
the practice, they (on the 12th February) caused to be 
issued, by the Admiralty, letters of marque, 1 and 
reprisals against the French shipping — whilst press- 
gangs scoured the streets and boarded all vessels for 
seamen. As, for instance (16th February), " A press broke 
out in the river yesterday morning, all the seamen were 
taken from the colliers, and the gangs were very success- 
ful." And every means were taken to get sailors to 



1 Power, license, or extraordinary commission, granted by a State to its 
subjects, to make reprisals at sea on the subjects of another, under pre- 
tence of indemnification for injuries received. 



20 



Old Times. \} 793-4- 



volunteer, vide the following extract out of a letter from 
Rochester, 15 th February :— " Three guineas are given 
to an able-bodied seaman, two guineas to an ordinary 
seaman, and one guinea to a landsman (above the King's 
bounty), to those who shall enter within a month in this 
city ; being the voluntary generosity of the Mayor and 
corporation here." And this example was followed by 
many other corporations. 

War being declared, preparations for it were carried 
on with the utmost vigour. The Duke of York, colonel 
of the Guards (afterwards on 12th April made general), 
addressed the three regiments on parade, told them that 
he would accompany them to Holland, and asked for 
volunteers. This met with an unanimous response, but 
the number required being limited, such men, only, were 
selected, who were judged fittest for the service, and 
they started on their expedition on 25th February, after 
having been inspected by the King. 

It is no part of the scheme of this book to follow the 
fortunes of the war, and, as there is little else noteworthy 
in the year 1793, we pass to the next year. 

On the 22nd February, 1794, His Majesty sent a 
message to Parliament, calling attention to the expediency 
of increasing the land forces, and, consequently, a large 
increase in the militia, and an addition to the fencible 
corps, were voted, and the Secretary of State sent a 
circular to all the Lords-lieutenant of Counties, recom- 
mending them to solicit voluntary contributions towards 
carrying on the war. 

Wilberforce still continued to agitate the slave ques- 
tion, although not on the same lines as formerly. He 
changed his tactics, and, as the sense of the House, on 



1 794-] Old Times. 21 

a previous occasion, was in favour of gradually doing 
away with it, he introduced a Bill for abolishing that 
part of the slave trade which related to the supply of 
foreign plantations. Of course it met with opposition, 
Sir William Young moving that it be read a second time 
this day (26th February) six months, but it was carried 
in the Lower House, the numbers for the second reading 
being 56 against 38 — majority, 18. The Bill, however, was 
thrown out in the Lords, owing to the opposition of Lord 
Grenville, who argued that such a Bill should not be 
introduced whilst the House was instituting inquiry into 
the whole question. And so, for a time, it dropped, 
perforce. 

Many amongst us seem to think that Sir Rowland 
Hill originated the penny post, but such is not the fact. 
That it was mainly through his instrumentality that 
letters could be sent to all parts of England, Scotland, 
and Ireland, at the uniform price of one penny, and 
that he did much to re-organise the vast establishment 
of the post-office, is beyond doubt ; but the penny post 
existed long before that. There is a squabble between 
Dockwra and Murray as to which of them commenced it 
in 1683; at a H events, the Government took it from 
Dockwra in 1690, and afterwards gave him a pension of 
£500 a year, and he was made Controller of the District 
Post ; but he was finally discharged, on account of some 
charges of malversation, &c, brought against him. 

In 171 1 an Act was passed abolishing the penny post, 
and on June 23rd of that year a proclamation was 
issued, putting it in force. But it was resuscitated, for 
we find, in the Parliamentary intelligence of the Times, 
26th February, 1794: "House of Commons, 25th Feb- 
ruary. The House having gone into Committee, Mr. 



22 Old Times. [1794- 

Long proposed some resolutions to be adopted as an 
improvement on the mode of carrying letters by the 
penny post. It was proposed that letters sent by the 
penny post should be carried six times every day, and 
that an additional duty of one penny should be paid to the 
King, — that is, as we understand it, that the person who 
receives the letter shall pay a penny in all cases, as well 
as he who sends it. Another resolution was, that the 
postage of letters in the islands of Guernsey and Jersey 
should be the same as in England." Pitt explained that 
the extra penny would, probably, only cover the extra 
cost involved in having six deliveries, and, after a short 
debate, the resolutions passed the Committee. 

The Times (28th February 1794), commenting thereon 
says — " The new Penny Post Office is likely to prove such 
a very great accommodation to the public, that the only 
wonder is, it has been so long neglected. Instead of the 
numbers of deliveries, and the hours of despatch varying 
in different parts of the town, as at present, there will 
be six deliveries each day in all parts of the town ; by 
which means a person living at Mary-le-Bonne may send 
letters to, or receive letters from, Limehouse, a distance 
of seven miles, five times a day. . . . Persons putting 
in letters by nine in the morning, at the distance of ten 
miles from the chief Penny Post Office, and later, at less 
distant parts, may receive answers from London the same 
afternoon." 

The Revolution in France still continued, as did then 
emigration, for a return was made of the number of 
emigres, who had been brought off from Toulon by the 
British Fleet, and this report avers that they numbered 
14,877 men, women, and children. No wonder, then, at 
the passing of the Alien Act. 



1 794-] Old Times. 23 

The French Revolution, no doubt, stirred up the dis- 
contented, and disaffected, in England : the perusal of 
Paine's " Rights of Man " in no ways tended to soothe a 
rebellious feeling, and the mob, on several occasions, 
was very riotous. Societies, like the " Corresponding 
Society " and the " Society for Constitutional Information," 
were founded in London, and the Government, feeling 
itself strong enough, was determined to strike a blow 
and crush them : so, on the 12th May, the King sent a 
message to Parliament, saying, that " having received 
information that the seditious practices, which have been 
for some time carried on by certain societies in different 
parts of the country, have lately been pursued with 
increased activity and boldness," &c. ... he " has 
given directions for seizing the books and papers of the 
said societies in London, which papers have been seized 
accordingly, and these books and papers appear to con- 
tain matter of the greatest importance." He directed them 
to be laid before Parliament for consideration, so that 
they might take "measures thereupon, as may appear to 
be necessary, for effectually guarding against the further 
prosecution of these dangerous designs." 

John Thelwall (political lecturer), Daniel Adams, and 
Thomas Hardy were taken into custody. The latter two 
were examined before the Privy Council on the 13th, the 
former on the 14th, on which date a Royal Messenger 
went to Earl Stanhope's house, and arrested his lordship's 
private secretary, the Rev. Jeremiah Joyce. A famous 
agitator, the Rev. John Home Tooke, was also taken. 
Their trials took place in October, November, and 
December 1794, and ended in the acquittal of the 
prisoners, after which the Government abandoned similar 
prosecutions. 



24 Old Times. [1794- 

But a patriotic feeling was abroad, more than enough 
to counterbalance these turbulent spirits. The vast 
majority of the population was loyal, and volunteers 
hastened to band together for the defence of their 
country. One or two instances will suffice. " On the 
17th April the Court of Common Council of the City of 
London agreed to open a subscription for raising, and 
disciplining, a regiment of infantry and a troop of cavalry 
for the defence of the city, to be called the ' Loyal 
London Volunteers.' " — " Rutland Volunteers Troops of 
Cavalry. On the 5th instant, 154 men and horses, 
consisting of the high sheriff, the noblemen, gentlemen, 
and yeomen, who intend forming this corps, met at 
Oakham. . . . Uniform, French gray and buff. Every 
person who belongs to this corps binds himself, under 
£50 penalty, to attend when called upon." — Times, 21st 
April. These two instances shew the wide range 
the volunteers' movement — then in its very infancy — 
took. 

The feeling, however, of the nation was not altogether 
unanimous in favour of war. There was then, as now, 
a peace party. On 6th March Mr. Whitbread moved an 
address to the King, strongly disapproving of the policy 
of the Government, and of their conduct, not only pre- 
ceding, but succeeding the war. The Earl of Guildford 
did the same in the Lords, but in both Houses the 
motions were negatived by large majorities. Nothing 
daunted by this, on 30th May, the Duke of Bedford, in 
the House of Lords, reviewed the causes which led to 
the war, and also the foreign policy of the Government, 
ending by moving fourteen resolutions, of which the most 
material were the two following : — " That it appeared 
expedient to that House, that it should recommend to His 



1 794-] Old Times. 25 

Majesty to adopt such measures as might lead to a 
negotiation for peace." 

Or that, " if His Majesty, in his wisdom, thought it 
advisable still to prosecute the war, that he would be 
most graciously pleased to state what the object of it 
was." 

After a debate, which lasted till half-past one o'clock, 
it was adjourned till the following Monday. 

In the Commons, Fox took the same tone, winding 
up with — " The advantages we had gained by sea and 
land were favourable for the negotiation of a peace, as 
they served as so many funds to induce the enemy to 
treat ; and, should we fail, we should thereby justify 
our pacific intentions to the world." He concluded by 
moving resolutions similar to those of the Duke of 
Bedford. The result was — For the previous question, 
208; for Mr. Fox's resolutions, 55 — majority, 153. And 
no more was heard of the Duke of Bedford's resolu- 
tions. 

The next, and last, great incident was, Lord Howe's 
great naval victory over the French off the coast of 
Ushant, on " the glorious first of June." Two 80 and 
five 74 gun ships were the substantial fruits of this vic- 
tory, although " Le Vengeur," one of the 74's, sunk soon 
after capture, drowning some 300 men. No one knows 
the French loss in this battle, but we do know, that on 
board the prizes taken there were found 1200 dead 
bodies. Our total loss was 904. The news travelled 
very fast, for that day ; Sir Roger Curtis, Howe's first 
captain, arrived at the Admiralty with despatches on 
the evening of the 10th June. 

The jubilation was great, nor was practical sympathy 



26 Old Times. [i 794-5- 

with the widows and orphans of our seamen wanting. 
In less than one hour a thousand guineas were sub- 
scribed at Lloyd's for their relief. The popular 
rejoicing took the form of illuminating the houses, 
smashing Earl Stanhope's windows, and much beer 
drinking. The thanks of both Houses of Parliament 
were given to Earl Howe, and, on his arrival at 
Portsmouth, the King, Queen, and the Royal family 
went down and paid him a visit on board his own ship, 
on 29th June. As there is a crispness, and freshness, 
about contemporary accounts of events, let the Times 
(July 1st) tell the story. 

" On the King being received on board the ' Queen 
Charlotte,' he presented Earl Howe with a diamond 
hilted sword. His lordship, perceiving His Majesty's 
intention, threw the sword he had on his side upon 
the deck, and, kneeling, received from the Sovereign's 
hand this distinguished proof of approbation. His 
Majesty also presented a gold chain, to which a medal 
is hereafter to be annexed, to Admiral Sir Alexander 
Hood, and Rear-Admiral Gardner ; the like honour 
was conferred on Lord Howe's first captain, Sir Roger 
Curtis. The wounded Admirals, Bowyer and Pasley, who 
consequently could not attend, have been distinguished 
with similar marks of His Majesty's favour." 

Poor Admirals Bowyer and Pasley had to be pensioned 
off, on account of their wounds, in February 1795, the 
sum awarded to each being ^500 per annum. 

At the commencement of 1795 the French took pos- 
session of Utrecht, Rotterdam, and Dort : the treasure 
of the Prince of Orange was sent to London, and the 
Stadtholder and his family had to make a hurried flight 



1 795] Old Times. 27 

for their lives in an open boat, luckily reaching Harwich 
safely. The French having thus occupied Holland, the 
English Government laid an embargo on all Dutch vessels 
in our ports. 

The Opposition still attempted to embarrass the 
Government on the question of the War, and, on 26th 
January, Mr. Grey, in a very lengthy speech, brought 
forward a motion, recommending peace with France. Pitt 
came forward with an amendment, to the purport that 
there could be no security for peace whilst the Govern- 
ment of France was an irregular one, and, on its being 
put, it was carried by 269 to 86. 

Wilberforce still kept " pegging away " at the Slave 
Trade, and, on 26th February, introduced a motion, " for 
leave to bring in a Bill for the abolition of the slave 
trade, at a time to be limited." Pitt lent him the weight 
of his influence, but it was a small House, and he lost it 
by a majority of 17. 

Fox, naturally (being in opposition), was always 
baiting the Government, and on 24th March he moved, 
" That the House should resolve itself into a Committee 
to inquire into the state of the nation ; " but he suffered a 
severe defeat, the numbers against his motion being 219; 
for, 63. 

The English troops in Holland had met with a series 
of misadventures, and were compelled to retreat. A fine 
array of 35,000 men left our shores for this expedition, 
and but about a fifth part could be mustered when they 
reached the town of Bremen, on the 27th and 28th of 
March — and right glad were they to embark on board 
the transports lying in the Elbe, ready to receive them. 

The harvest of 1794 had been bad, and bread and 



28 Old Times. [1795- 

provisions generally were so dear as practically to 
amount to a famine among the poor. People, as a rule, 
will, unfortunately, not starve quietly, so we hear of food 
riots occasionally. On nth April a mob at Portsea 
attacked the butchers' and bakers' shops, and compelled 
them with persuasive eloquence to sell, the one, meat at 
4d per lb. — the other, bread at 6d a quartern loaf. 
Again on 20th April, the Oxford Militia, with loaded 
guns and fixed bayonets, went to Seaford, where, having 
confiscated all the beef and mutton they could lay their 
hands on, they sold it at 4d per lb., and then, going to 
Newhaven, they seized 2000 sacks of flour, and sold it 
at their own price. This flagrant breach of military 
discipline was, however, soon punished, for the Horse 
Artillery and Lancashire Fencibles came up and took 
the rioters prisoners. But similar riots were rife all 
through the Midlands. 

In the autumn things got even worse, and Parliament 
was assembled earlier than usual to deliberate on a 
remedy for this state of things ; the outcome of which 
was an order for a bounty of twenty shillings per quarter 
on wheat from the Mediterranean, fifteen shillings on 
wheat from America, and five shillings per quarter on 
Indian corn. Bills also were passed prohibiting the 
manufacture of starch from wheat, and also the distilla- 
tion of spirit from grain. 

This scarcity of food, and the heavy burdens, both in 
taxation, the levying of men, and the pressgangs, fell 
sorely on the poor, who murmured loudly, — a fact which 
was duly taken advantage of by the demagogues for 
their own seditious purposes. They agitated for uni- 
versal suffrage and annual parliaments, and the move- 
ment gathered strength. On the 26th October, the 



1 79 5.] Old Times. 29 

Corresponding Society held a mass meeting in Copen- 
hagen Fields, and the inflammatory speeches there deli- 
vered, no doubt, bore their fruit three days afterwards, 
when the mob stoned the King. As the Tinted account 
of this assault is very meagre, compared with that in 
the Annual Register, I copy the latter verbatim. 

" 29th October. — On the occasion of His Majesty's 
going to the House of Lords, the Mall and the Parade 
of St. James's Park, and Parliament Street, were com- 
pletely choked up with spectators. The crowd was by 
no means so great at the Coronation, and, to see the King 
go to the House, there never were before more than a 
tenth part of the numbers of this day ; for they, at least, 
amounted to 200,000. Several noblemen and Cabinet 
Ministers passed through the Park from Buckingham 
House about two o'clock. The Earl of Chatham, Duke 
of Gloucester, &c, were hissed, and the Duke of Port- 
land was very much hooted. 

"About twenty minutes afterwards the King left 
Buckingham House, and was violently hissed and hooted 
and groaned at the whole way ; but no violence was 
offered till he arrived opposite the Ordnance Office, 
when a small pebble, or marble, or bullet, broke one of 
the windows. In returning, the moment His Majesty 
entered the Park the gates of the Horse Guards were 
shut, for the purpose of excluding the mob who followed 
the carriage ; at which, as it passed opposite Spring 
Gardens Terrace, another stone was thrown, but it for- 
tunately struck the woodwork between the windows. 

" The crowd now pressed closely round the coach, 
and His Majesty, in considerable agitation, signified, by 
waving his hands to the Horse Guards on each side, his 
anxiety that the multitude should be kept at a distance. 



3° Old Times. [ I795 . 

In this way he passed on through the Park, and round 
by the Stable Yard, into St. James's Palace, at the front 
gate, the bottom of St. James's Street. A considerable 
tumult took place when His Majesty was about to alight, 
and one of the horses in the state coach took fright, 
threw down an old groom of the name of Dorrington, 
and broke one of his thighs, but it proved, fortunately, 
a simple fracture; his other thigh was considerably 
bruised, but not dangerously. 

"A few minutes after His Majesty had entered the 
palace, the mob attacked the state coach with stones, and 
did it great injury. In its way along Pall Mall to the 
Mews many things were also thrown at it. After a 
short time the King went, in his private coach, from St. 
James's to Buckingham House ; but, on his way through 
the Park the mob surrounded the carriage, and pre- 
vented it from proceeding, crying out, ' Bread 1 Bread ! 
Peace! Peace ! '—The Guards were, however, speedily 
brought up, and they protected the carriage till His 
Majesty got safe into Buckingham House. 

"When His Majesty entered the House of Peers, the 
first words he uttered were these, to the Lord Chancellor : 
1 My Lord, I have been shot at ! ' This alluded to the 
substance which had broke the window while passing 
the Ordnance Office. 

" Three or four persons were apprehended on suspicion 
of having thrown stones, &c, at the King, and one of 
them was charged with having called out, 'No king' 
and other such expressions. They were all examined 
at the Duke of Portland's office ; and, waiting the result 
of this business, nothing was done in the House of 
Lords till near six o'clock, when Lord Westmoreland 
who rode in the carriage with the King, having previ- 



1 7950 Old Times. 31 

ously moved * that strangers be ordered to withdraw,' 
stated the insult and outrage with which the King had 
been treated ; and added that His Majesty, and those 
who had accompanied him, were of opinion that the 
glass of the coach had been broken by a ball from an 
air-gun, which had been shot from a bow window of a 
house adjoining the Ordnance Office, with a view to 
assassinate him. 

" The King, through the whole of the riot, displayed 
the cool magnanimity for which the family have ever been 
distinguished. At the time that the glass of the coach 
was broken, he said to Lord Westmoreland, ' That is 
a shot ; ' and, instead of leaning back in the carriage, or 
striving to avoid the assassin, he pointed to the round 
hole in the pane, and examined it. But this was not 
all ; he went into the private coach, to go from St. 
James's to the Queen's house, in the midst of the 
wildest commotions of the multitude, thereby exposing 
himself, almost without guards, to their fury ; and then 
it was that His Majesty's person was most imminently 
in danger." 

" 30//* October. — Confident in the attachment of his 
people, notwithstanding the alarms of the preceding day, 
the King, accompanied by Her Majesty and three of the 
Princesses, visited Covent Garden Theatre, and, at their 
entrance, was received with the usual burst of applause. 
' God save the King ' was sung twice, and, by a con- 
siderable part of the house, over-zealously called for a 
third time ; this, in a corner of the gallery, provoked a 
few hisses, which, however, were soon overruled, and 
one or two of the most active of the turbulent party were 
turned out ; after which the performance went on." 

Five persons were apprehended for this outrage, but 



32 Old Times. [1795- 

with the exception of one, Kidd Wake, aged 27, a 
journeyman printer, who owned to his hissing and 
hooting at His Majesty, and who was committed to take 
his trial on 14th November, I cannot trace their fate; 
probably they were discharged for want of evidence. 

A Royal Proclamation was issued, offering one 
thousand pounds reward to any one " who shall give 
information, so that any of such authors, actors, or 
abettors, as aforesaid, shall be apprehended and brought 
to justice." 

In November there were fearful storms, especially on 
the 6th, which were extraordinarily destructive, both to 
life and property. One of these storms was so severely 
felt at Weymouth, that nearly 1600 dead bodies were, 
at different times, thrown up on the beach, 300 being 
buried at one time, and, had not the Gloucestershire 
Militia helped in burying them, there would, doubtless, 
have been a pestilence. 

On 8th December Pitt, in the House of Commons, 
delivered a message from the King, in which occurs the 
following passage, which must have been hailed with 
thanksgiving throughout the length and breadth of the 
land : — " His Majesty, on this occasion, thinks proper to 
acquaint the House, that the crisis which was depending l 
at the commencement of the present session, has led to 
such an order of things in France, as will induce His 
Majesty (conformably to the sentiments which he has 
already declared) to meet any disposition to negotiation 
on the part of the enemy, with an earnest desire to give 
it the fullest and speediest effect, and to conclude a 
treaty for general peace, whenever it can be effected on 
just and suitable terms for himself and his allies." 
1 (?) impending. 



i79 6 -] Old Times. 33 

At the commencement of 1796 the Royal Family were 
still in bad odour with a certain section of the public, — 
nor can it be wondered at by any one who has studied 
the satirical prints of the day. Every foible of Royalty 
was noted, exaggerated, engraved on " perennial brass," 
exhibited most freely in the shop windows, and most 
eagerly purchased. Farmer George, and his simple, 
and somewhat mean habits, the Queen's avarice, the 
Prince of Wales' licentiousness, and extravagance, and 
all the scandals (and they were many) appertaining to 
the rest of the Royal Family, were ruthlessly laid bare, 
and mercilessly exposed to the public gaze. 

That this must have tended to lower the Royal Family 
in most men's eyes, there can be no doubt, so that we 
are not very much surprised at the occasional practical 
manifestations of the mob. On the night of 1st February, 
there was more stone-throwing on the part of the popu- 
lace, which the Times of 3rd February thus describes : — 
" On Monday night, as the Royal Family were returning 
from Drury Lane Theatre, just as they reached the middle 
of Pall Mall, a stone was flung at the coach in which were 
their Majesties and the lady-in-waiting, which broke the 
glass, and, entering the carriage, struck the Queen on 
the cheek, and fell into Lady Harrington's lap. 

" A deposition of the circumstances was taken yester- 
day at the Duke of Portland's office, at which his Grace 
and some of the Bow Street Magistrates were present ; 
when four of the footmen attending their Majesties were 
examined ; a reward will be immediately offered to dis- 
cover the offender." And so it was to the extent of 
£1000, but nothing came of it. 

Whilst on the subject of the royal unpopularity, I 

may mention that Kydd Wake, who last year was 

c 



34 Old Times. [1796- 

apprehended for hissing and hooting at the King, was 
tried before Lord Kenyon, for " trespass, riot, and mis- 
demeanour," and found guilty — sentence being deferred. 
This, however, was pronounced upon him by Mr. Justice 
Ashurst at the Court of King's Bench 7th May. His 
judgment was somewhat long-winded, and he concluded 
thus : — " It now becomes my duty to pronounce the 
sentence of the Court ; which is, that you be committed 
to the custody of the keeper of the Penitentiary House, 
in, and for, the County of Gloucester, and be kept to 
hard labour for the space of five years ; and, within the 
first three months of that time, that you stand in, and 
upon, the Pillory for one hour, between the hours of 
eleven and two o'clock in the afternoon, in some public 
street on a market day ; and that you give sureties in 
£1000, for your good behaviour for the term of ten 
years, to be computed from the expiration of the said five 
years ; and that you be further imprisoned till you find 
the said sureties." 

On the 15 th February, Mr. Grey, in the House of 
Commons, again ventilated the subject of peace, this time 
in the shape of an address to the King, praying him to 
communicate to the executive government of France, his 
readiness to meet any disposition to negotiate a general 
peace. ■ Both Pitt and Fox spoke on the subject, but the 
motion was lost by 189 to 50. 

There was one crumb of comfort to the nation, which 
had hitherto been suffering from a grievous scarcity of 
bread-stuffs, and this was the great fall in wheat, which 
took place on 31st March. On that date, owing to the 
large importations of foreign wheat, this grain fell 13s. 
per quarter. 

Joy, too, must have sprung up in the national heart 



1796] Old Times. 35 

when the King made his speech on the opening of both 
Houses, 7th October. He said : — " I have omitted no 
endeavours for setting on foot negotiations to restore 
peace to Europe, and to secure, for the future, general 
tranquillity. The steps I have taken for this purpose 
have at length opened the way to an immediate and 
direct negotiation, the issue of which must either produce 
the desirable end of a just, honourable, and solid Peace 
for Us, and for Our Allies, or must prove, beyond dis- 
pute, to what cause alone the prolongation of the calami- 
ties of war must be ascribed. I shall immediately send a 
person to Paris with full powers to treat for this object, 
and it is My anxious wish that this measure may lead 
to the restoration of General Peace ; but you must be 
sensible that nothing can so much contribute to give 
effect to this desire, as your manifesting that We possess 
both the determination and the resources to oppose, with 
increased activity and energy, the farther efforts with 
which We have to contend." 

The " person " who was to go over to France as 
Plenipotentiary, was Sir James Harris, who had lately been 
made Lord Malmesbury — and he arrived at Paris on 22nd 
October. The usual diplomatic fencing took place, but 
this was brought to an end by a squabble respecting the 
annexation of the Netherlands to France. Lord Malmes- 
bury wished to communicate with his Government on 
this point, but the Directory meant to force his hand, 
and required his ultimatum within twenty-four hours, 
and, as he still asked for time, he was told his presence in 
Paris was useless, and that he must depart within two 
days. He replied that he would leave next day, and 
demanded his passports. On the 20th December he 
left Paris for England, and so ended, for a while, all 



^ 6 Old Times. [i79 6 - 

hopes of peace. That the French had but faint hopes of 
a successful end to the mission is evident, for, during the 
negotiations, on 2nd November, the Council of Five 
Hundred passed a decree, prohibiting the importation of 
British goods into the Republic. 

As a proof of the patriotism of the English people, 
and their thorough reliance on the Government, Pitt 
asked for a loan of eighteen millions. This loan, called 
" The Loyalty Loan," was opened on 5th December, and 
in 15 hours 20 minutes it was all subscribed. The Times 
of 6th December says—" Yesterday, soon after 1 1 o'clock, 
the subscription for eighteen millions sterling, for the 
services of the ensuing year, closed at the Bank ; and 
such was the general desire to subscribe, that the Court 
Room was a scene of the utmost confusion. Many 
gentlemen were altogether disappointed ; and those who 
could get near the books to put down their names, did so 
with the utmost difficulty. There was very little remain- 
ing to be subscribed ; for a great number of orders had 
been received by Mr. Newland in the morning, from the 
country, which claimed a preference; and, accordingly, 
the doors were shut some time, until these commissions 
were written down. There is no doubt but that many 
millions more would have been subscribed, if the public 
service had required it. There cannot be a greater proof 
of the patriotism of all ranks of people in thus assisting 
Government, because, at the time the loan was opened, the 
other funds were considerably the cheapest purchase." 

Nor was it money only, that our forefathers gave. 
In October 195,000 men were voted for the land service 
for the year 1797, and 120,000 seamen and marines for 
the navy. There was also a levy of 15,000 men, from 
the different parishes, for sea service, and recruiting the 



1 797-] Old Times. $7 

regiments of the line, and a supplementary militia was 
raised, of 60,000 men, not to be immediately called out, 
but to be enrolled, officered, and completely trained, so 
as to be ready in a moment of danger, and a force of 
20,000 irregular cavalry was also embodied. 

The year closed with a frost which exceeded in 
severity any known for many years. Many people were 
frozen to death, and the thermometer was 34, and 35 
degrees below freezing point. 

1797 opened very gloomily ; finance, the backbone of a 
nation, was somewhat dislocated. People were alarmed 
at the rapid growth of the National Debt, and, selling 
out of the funds, found other investments for their 
capital : there had been an enormous drain of bullion 
to subsidise the allies, and Pitt had borrowed from the 
Bank in the most reckless manner. It was in vain that 
the Bank remonstrated with him, but still he borrowed, 
so that at last he had to be told that if he took any more, 
it would probably lead to the insolvency of the Bank. 
There was a run upon the country banks, and its effects 
were soon felt in London ; and, on 26th, an order of the 
Privy Council was made, forbidding the Bank of England 
from making cash payments, until Parliament had been 
consulted. On inquiry, it was found that the Bank was 
not only perfectly solvent, but, after payment of all 
liabilities, its capital would amount to £9,660,290. 
Under these circumstances Mr. Pitt brought in a bill 
(37 George III. cap. 28), permitting the Bank to issue 
notes from 20s. upwards, in lieu of cash. This measure 
brought relief, and saved the National credit. 

Perhaps one of the chief National events in the year, 
was the mutiny of the fleets. Looking at it from this 



38 Old Times. [1797- 

distance of time, one can hardly wonder at it, especially 
when we consider the way in which the crews were 
procured, by impressment and otherwise, their hard fare, 
the bad accommodation for them, the frequent punish- 
ments, from 50 to 500 lashes, at the discretion of a 
possibly irate captain, frequently for venial offences ; add 
to this, small pay, and constant work, and we are fain 
to acknowledge that the men who could stand such treat- 
ment tamely, were almost more than human. 

Yet they stated their grievances very properly, and 
quietly, sending petitions, either in February, or March, 
to Lord Howe, begging him to use his influence with 
the Admiralty, to procure them an increase of wages, and 
an improvement in the quality, and quantity, of their 
provisions. No notice whatever was taken of this 
temperate remonstrance, so the men, finding no help 
came to them, tried to help themselves, and secret 
communication was opened between all the vessels of the 
fleet. No one can defend the gross breach of discipline 
of which they were guilty, but it must be remembered 
that they were ignorant men, smarting under- a sense of 
injury, rendered especially galling, by their just com- 
plaints, and moderate demands, being utterly ignored. 

Their plot to seize the ships, and expel the officers, 
came to be known, and, on 15 th April, Admiral Lord 
Bridport, in obedience to orders from the Admiralty, 
signalled for the fleet to sail. But the men refused to 
put to sea (unless an enemy was known to be at sea), 
until their grievances had been examined into, and 
redressed. A deputation, of two men from each ship, 
met in the Admiral's cabin, and another petition was 
drawn up. On the 18th, a Committee of the Lords of 
the Admiralty went to Portsmouth, to investigate the 



1797-1 Old Times. 39 

seamen's claims ; and the result was, that Admiral Brid- 
port returned to his ship on 23rd April, and, having 
hoisted his flag, he told his crew that he brought with 
him the redress of all their grievances, and the King's 
pardon for all offenders. 

One would imagine that this would satisfy them, 
coming as it did from the mouth of their " father and 
friend," but when, on the 7th of May, he signalled to 
put to sea, no ship would obey him. The fact is, the 
men were suspicious ; they had been so badly treated 
with regard to the granting of their moderate demands, 
that they thought the order for sailing was only a ruse 
to get them away, and then faith would not be kept with 
them. This mutiny was unfortunately accompanied by 
bloodshed, and it lasted until the 14th May. On the 
nth, Lord Howe visited the fleet, saw the delegates, 
and assured them, that before a Royal pardon could be 
proclaimed, they must express contrition for their con- 
duct. This they did, but solemnly declared they would 
never again receive on board those officers they had 
sent on shore. This was agreed to, and Lord Howe, on 
the 14th of May, showed them an Act of Parliament, 
which granted what they wished, and the fleet at St. 
Helens were, for a time, content. 

But, at the Nore, there was much discontent, or rather 
open mutiny ; the men had forced the Admiralty to grant 
their demands, and now thought they could go in for 
more ; and, to enforce it, they attempted to blockade the 
Thames, and prevent any vessel from entering or depart- 
ing, — and they did fire on several that attempted to run 
the blockade. Of course, such a state of things could 
not last long, and the removal of all the buoys, by the 
Admiralty, helped to bring about a surrender. Their 



40 Old Times. [1797- 

provisions began to run short, and the Government 
peremptorily refused to accede to their demands. Some 
of the fleet left, and returned to their duty, on the 9th 
June. On the 10th, more struck the red flag, and on 
the 1 2th, there were but seven left that were not flying 
the Union Jack ; and next day, five of them sought the 
protection of Sheerness. 

The mutiny was now at an end, and it only remained 
to deal with the ringleaders, the chief of whom was 
named Richard Parker, and he, and several others, were 
duly hanged. Many who were sentenced to 'death were, 
however, pardoned, and a general veil of oblivion was 
wisely thrown over the whole affair, as soon as the men 
returned to their duty. 

Earlier in the year occurred a curious page in our 
history, nothing less than a practical invasion of England 
by the French, details of which can best be learned from 
contemporary accounts. 

" London Gazette, Extraordinary, February 25. 

" A letter this day received by the Duke of Portland, 
from Lord Milford, Lord-Lieutenant of the County of 
Pembroke, dated Haverfordwest, February 23rd, 5 p.m., 
contains information that two frigates, a corvette, and a 
lugger, appeared off the coast of Pembrokeshire the 22nd 
inst., and on the evening of that day disembarked some 
troops reported by deserters to be about 1200, but with- 
out field-pieces." 

" London Gazette, Extraordinary, February 26. 

" Haverfordwest x February 24, 1797, 6 o'clock a.m.— 
Since I had the honour of writing last to your Grace by 
Express, I have received information of the French ships 



1 797-] Old Times. 41 

having sailed, and left 300 men behind, who have 
surrendered themselves prisoners. The great Spirit and 
Loyalty that the Gentlemen and Peasantry have shown 
on this occasion exceeds description. Many thousands 
of the latter assembled, armed with pikes, and scythes, 
and attacked the enemy, previous to the arrival of the 
Troops that were sent against them." 

"February 24th, 9 o'clock p.m. — I have the honour 
and pleasure to inform your Grace, that the whole of the 
French troops, amounting to near 1400 men, have surren- 
dered, and are now on their march to Haverfordwest." 

And so ends the invasion of England. 

On 14th February, Admiral Sir John Jervis, with 
fifteen sail of the line, attacked the Spanish Fleet of 
twenty-seven sail of the line, off Cape St. Vincent, cap- 
tured four large vessels, and dispersed the fleet. The 
news reached England on 3rd March, when London was 
brilliantly illuminated. 

The Whigs moved heaven and earth in order to oust 
Pitt and his Government, but without success. On 
March 3rd the inhabitants of Westminster met in Palace 
Yard, and resolved to petition the King to dismiss his 
Ministry. In the City, too (the bones of whose patres 
conscripti would shake with indignation, could they but 
know of the present wave of Conservatism, which has 
flowed over this Corporation), loud, and many, were the 
calls to the same purport. In vain were Common Halls 
convened, in vain did the Remembrancer, and the Sheriffs, 
wait upon his Majesty with petitions; he would have none 
of them, but would be glad to see them at a Levee ; and 
so Pitt kept in, notwithstanding the growls all round. 

France was making peace with its enemies, one by 
one, and it could easily be foreseen that, very shortly, 



42 



Old Times. [1797-8. 



England would have to bear all the brunt of the war ; 
therefore, on the 1st June, a note from Lord Grenville 
was presented to M. de la Croix, the French Minister 
for Foreign Affairs, in which was expressed the wish of 
the English Government to negotiate preliminaries of 
peace. Of course there was some diplomatic fence ; but, 
finally, it was settled that Lord Malmesbury should again 
go as Plenipotentiary. He arrived at Lisle on 6th July, 
but the demands of the French were outrageous, and, 
after, in vain, combating their absurd requirements, he de- 
manded his passports, and left Lisle on 1 8th September. 

On nth October, Admiral Duncan attacked the Dutch 
fleet off Camperdown, and, after a terrible action, de- 
feated it, capturing eleven vessels, and sinking one. 

About the last event of national interest, occurring in 
this year, is the formation of the French " Army of Eng- 
land," which was destined for our invasion, and which 
was to be under the command of General Buonaparte, 
which is about the first time our great enemy came into 
active collision with us. 

At the commencement of 1798, the financial pressure 
on the nation, caused by the war, was very great. A 
triple assessed tax, a loan of £15,000,000, additional 
duties on salt, tea, dogs, horses and carriages, and a tax on 
armorial bearings, came home to every one. Yet, Eng- 
lish patriotism was sound to the core, and the people 
helped the Government nobly, by means of voluntary 
contributions. A few examples will show how every 
class vied with each other in subscribing. They are 
taken from the Times. 

February Jth. — " Yesterday the Marquis of Bucking- 
ham subscribed at the Bank, the profits of one year's 



1798.] Old Times. 43 

income from his Tellership of the Exchequer. On 
Monday the Duke of Marlborough subscribed £5000 at 
the Bank. The city of Oxford has subscribed £500 as 
a voluntary donation, to be continued for three years, 
if the war lasts so long." 

February 8th. — " The subscriptions yesterday at the 
Bank amounted to upwards of £30,000. Among the 
subscribers were — the Earl of Carlisle £4000, and the 
Bishop of Litchfield and Coventry £1000. But the 
largest individual subscriptions are expected from Man- 
chester, from whence letters were yesterday received, 
stating that three mercantile houses in that opulant town 
had subscribed Thirty-five Thousand Pounds, and that 
Mr. Peek's house gave £20,000." 

On the 9th February a meeting, on this subject, was 
held at the Royal Exchange, the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, 
and most prominent citizens being present — and the 
result is thus stated in the Times, 10th February : — "As 
soon as the meeting was dissolved, four separate books 
were opened on the Hustings ; and at the close of 
the day, the exact sum subscribed in cash, was Forty- 
six Thousand, Five Hundred, and Thirty-four Pounds, 
Three Shillings and sixpence, which, if calculated for 
the time the books were opened, is at the rate of 
£400 a minute. The number of subscribers was 218, 
and the subscriptions from one guinea to £3000, which 
last sum was the donation of Boyd, Benfield, & Co., with 
the promise of continuing it annually during the war." 

14th February. — " The City of London yesterday sub- 
scribed £10,000 towards the contributions to the Bank. 
Yesterday the sum of £18,900 was subscribed by the 
merchants on the Royal Exchange." 

It would be wearisome to detail all the subscriptions, 



44 Old Times. [1798- 

but yet two or three more may be recorded. The Bank 
of England gave £200,000, and the King and Queen 
£20,000, and £5000 respectively, out of their private 
purses; and on 20th September the amount of the voluntary 
contributions then subscribed, was £i,5I4>993> I2S - 9 d - 

Ireland, this year, was more than disaffected : it was 
in open rebellion, and, on 30th March, a proclamation was 
issued by the Lord-Lieutenant, for suppressing such 
rebellion. That it was a most serious one, is evidenced 
by a paper in Lord Edward Fitzgerald's handwriting, 
that, at a meeting held 26th February 1798, a return 
was made that there were in Ulster, Leinster, and 
Munster, 269,896 armed men, and that their treasurer 
had £1485, 4s. 9d. in hand. That this was not altogether 
an exaggeration, is shewn by the fact that, in the year 
1797, there were seized by the Government, in the 
provinces of Leinster, and Ulster, alone, 49,109 guns, 
1756 bayonets, 4463 pistols, 4183 swords, 248 blunder- 
busses, 119 musket-barrels, 106 sword-blades, 22 pieces 
of ordnance, and 70,630 pikes, besides other weapons 
voluntarily surrendered. In the same year, 14,973 pikes 
were surrendered in the county of Kildare alone, and in 
Dublin, on nth May 1798, 5 pieces of cannon, and 500 
pike handles, were seized. 

On 24th May, seeing that war was being openly 
waged against the Government, the Lord-Lieutenant issued 
a proclamation warning the people that they were put 
under martial law, and, on the morrow, the rebels were 
defeated, with much loss, near Carlow, and, after the 
engagement, about 200 of them were hanged, or shot. 
Then the rebels gained a slight advantage, especially at 
Enniscorthy, where they compelled the garrison to retreat. 
This, and a few other small successes, were amply 



1 798.] Old Times. 45 

avenged by Lord Lake, on 21st June, at Vinegar Hill, a 
position which the Irish had held since the 28th May. 
Their rout was complete, and their slaughter must have 
been immense, for no quarter was given by the Royal 
troops. Then came the trials of the ringleaders, and the 
gibbet was in constant requisition. 

And, now, the French must needs have a finger in 
this pie, although their attempt at invasion was simply 
ludicrous. The following is the first official news, and 
it is a letter from the Duke of Portland to the Lord 
Mayor : — " 2Jth August. I think it right to inform your 
Lordship, that, by official accounts received this morning 
from the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, it appears that 
three French frigates, unaccompanied by any transports, 
appeared in the Bay of Killala, on the evening of the 
22nd instant, and landed about 700 men, who imme- 
diately took possession of the town of Killala, and made 
a small party of the Prince of Wales' Fencible Regiment, 
consisting of an officer and 20 men, and some yeomen, 
prisoners ; a large force is collecting from different 
quarters, and every necessary preparation making for 
attacking the enemy." 

This expedition, consisting of 1030 privates and 70 
officers under General Humbert, had sailed from Rochelle, 
with the intention of rendering material help to the Irish 
rebels — and, after the capture of Killala, they marched 
on Castlebar, where was a force of from 2000 to 3000 
regulars, under Lord Lake. The English artillery, how- 
ever, expended their ammunition too soon ; a fact the 
French did not lose sight of, but, charging, put the 
English force to flight, and they then occupied Castlebar. 
But here was the end of their success — General Lake 
and Lord Cornwallis surrounded them, and the French 



46 Old Times. [1798-9. 

had to surrender, but no quarter was given to the Irish. 
The number of French troops, on their surrender, was 96 
officers, and 748 non-commissioned officers and privates, 
the rest having been lost since their landing at Killala. 
This force was intended to be the vanguard of a larger ex- 
pedition, which was prevented joining, by want of funds. 

Another little expedition set sail from France, to help 
General Humbert, consisting of one ship of the line, 
eight frigates, a schooner, and a brig. It was met by 
Sir John Borlase Warren, who was cruising, with seven 
sail of the line, off Lough S willy. They engaged, and, 
after an action of three hours and forty minutes' duration, 
the French three-decker, and three of the frigates, hauled 
down their colours, and of the five frigates that then 
escaped, three were subsequently captured. 

The rebellion in Ireland was now virtually at an end, 
the rebels were dispersed, and their leaders accounted 
for. Still, this result was not arrived at without a fear- 
ful expenditure of treasure and life ; it being estimated 
that not less than 30,000 lives had been sacrificed. 
£1,000,000 was voted by Parliament, as compensation 
for injury done to the Loyalists in Ireland, and that sum 
was reckoned as only being a third of their actual losses. 

On the 1st August of this year was fought the battle 
of the Nile ; the news of which, however, did not reach 
the Admiralty until the 2nd October, and great were the 
rejoicings, and illuminations, on the 3rd. With this 
welcome news, the chronicle of the year may well end. 

As far as we can judge, from the lights of history 
which are left to us, nothing was going particularly 
wrong with the national arms, or the national prosperity, 
considering we were at war, but the powers, that were, 



1 799.] Old Times. 47 

thought things might possibly go better, if they had a 
General Fast, so, on the 1st February, 1799, a pro- 
clamation was issued : — 

" George R. — We, taking into Our most serious con- 
sideration the just and necessary War, in which We are 
engaged, for the Maintenance of the Independence of 
Our Crown, for the Defence and Protection of the Com- 
merce, and of the Rights and Liberties, Civil and Re- 
ligious, of Our Subjects, and putting Our trust in 
Almighty God, that He will graciously bless Our Arms, 
both by Sea and Land, have resolved, and do, by and 
with the Advice of Our Privy Council, hereby command 
that a Publick Fast and Humiliation be observed through- 
out that part of Our Kingdom of Great Britain called 
England, Our Dominion of Wales, and Town of Berwick 
upon Tweed, on Wednesday, the Twenty-seventh Day of 
this instant February ; that so both We and Our People 
may humble Ourselves before Almighty God, in order to 
obtain Pardon of Our Sins ; and may, in the most devout 
and solemn Manner, send up Our Prayers and Suppli- 
cations to the Divine Majesty, for averting those Heavy 
Judgments which Our manifold Sins and Provocations 
have most justly deserved ; and imploring His Blessing 
and Assistance on Our Arms, and for restoring and per- 
petuating Peace, Safety and Prosperity, to Us and Our 
Kingdoms," &c. &c. There were special forms of prayer 
for morning, communion, and evening services. 

In January, and February, there was much agitation as 
to the union with Ireland, to which the Irish Parliament, 
by small majorities, was agreeable ; but it was reserved 
till 1st January, 180 1, to become an accomplished fact. 

After besieging St. Jean d'Acre for sixty days, in vain, 
Napoleon determined to raise the siege, and, on the 20th 



4 8 



Old Times. 



[1799- 



May, his army began its return march to Egypt. He 
threw his heavy artillery into the sea, not being able to 
transport it across the desert, and the English had pre- 
viously captured his battering train. It need scarcely be 
said that there was great rejoicing in England. 

Volunteers had sprung up as if by magic, and it was 
felt that it would do good, if they received some direct 
recognition from royalty, and were reviewed by the King. 
Accordingly, the time was fixed for the 4th of June, and 
the place, Hyde Park. I know I shall be pardoned if 
I give a list of the corps who were then reviewed, as 
so many of the modern Volunteers must be ignorant that 
their progenitors were present on this occasion. 



Cavalry. 

Islington. 

Westminster. 

Clerkenwell. 

Battersea. 

Wimbledon. 

Lambeth. 

Deptford. 

London and Westminster. 

Southwark. 

Surrey Yeomanry. 

Clapham. 

Infantry. 
Left Column. 
Hon. Artillery Corps. 
St. George's Regiment. 
Hackney. 
Westminster. 
Islington. 
Clerkenwell. 
St. Sepulchre. 
St. George's, Bloomsbury. 



London Volunteers. 

St. Luke's, Chelsea. 

St. Margaret and St. John. 

St. Mary-le-bonne. 

St. Martin's. 

Union. 

Chiswick. 

St. Paul, Covent Garden. 

Brentford. 

Fulham. 

St. George's, Hanover Sq. 

S.E. London Volunteers. 

Centre Column. 

Bloomsbury, &c. 

St. James's. 

N.E. London Volunteers. 

Hampstead. 

Temple. 

Pimlico. 

Finsbury Square. 

Somerset Place. 

Knight Marshal. 

Three Wards Association. 






1799] Old Times. 49 



Battersea. 

St. Catherine's. 

Poplar and Blackwall. 

Whitechapel. 

Highgate. 

Lambeth. 

St. Pancras. 

Wapping. 

Hendon. 

St. Olave. 

Eight Ward Association. 

Shoreditch. 



Right Column. 
Stoke Newington. 
Tottenham. 
Enfield. 
Edmonton. 
Hans Town. 

St. Andrew and St. George. 
St. Clement Danes. 
Streatham. 
Limehouse. 
Ratcliffe. 
Clapham. 

In all, there were 8193 effective men, and the Review 
was very successful, the only exception that was taken 
to it being, that some of the newly-embodied Corps did 
not fire with perfect regularity. Every Londoner is 
familiar with the statue in Pall Mall, of George III. on 
horseback, doffing his cocked hat. Well, that was how 
he appeared at this Review, which happened on his 
birthday. On the 21st, he, and all the young Princes, 
inspected some 12,200 men, in a very curious fashion. 
The Corps were not brigaded, as in Hyde Park, but 
were inspected in their different districts. The Royal 
party started at a quarter before 9 a.m., returned to 
Buckingham House at 6 p.m., and then set off for 
Windsor, a good day's work ! especially as it all, with 
the exception of the journey to Windsor, had to be 
done on horseback. The King, and party, were to have 
gone to Leman Street, Whitechapel, to inspect the Shore- 
ditch, Whitechapel, and Mile End Volunteers, but he 
could not get so far, so turned up Houndsditch, to Fins- 
bury. The only refreshment, and rest, the Royal party 
seem to have had, was breakfast with the Lord Chan- 
cellor, at his house in Upper Guildford Street, where 
they remained an hour and a-half. 

D 



5o 



Old Times. 



[1799. 



The history of the remainder of the year is centred in 
Napoleon Buonaparte. On 23rd of August, he suddenly 
left Egypt, affairs in France requiring his presence there, 
if he would look after his own interests. Had he not 
done so, it is probable that the world would never have 
heard so much of him ; as it was, he was elected the 
First Consul of the three, — Cambaceres, and Le Brun, 
being his coadjutors. 

On the 25 th December of this year, Napoleon com- 
mitted a solecism in diplomatic etiquette, by writing 
an autograph letter direct to George III., pointing out 
how each nation was wasting its strength and re- 
sources, and suggesting the possibility, and desirability, 
of peace. Lord Grenville replied to this letter, through 
Talleyrand, much to Napoleon's disgust, and expressed 
his regret that the English Government did not yet see 
its way to enter into negotiations for a peace, which 
would not, in all probability, be a lasting one. 

This year will close with a report of the number of 
French prisoners in England, taken December 31, when 
they were delivered over to our Transport Board, the 
Consular Government refusing to provide for them any 
longer. 

At Plymouth 
„ Portsmouth 
„ Liverpool 



Stapleton 
Chatham 
Yarmouth 
Edinburgh 
Norman Cross 



7,477 

10,128 

2,298 

6 93 

1,754 

50 

208 

3,038 



Total 



25,646 




The prince's /3ow 
Monstrous like r/ie R-ince! the very bow, demme!" 







fight Lacing. - /J 88 



fhese h'^hh Stays urill be Mc cfeaM of me* 



Old Times. 51 



MEN'S DRESS. 

The latter part of the last century was noticeable for 
the great, and grave, mutations which took place in 
masculine attire, and, most particularly, during the 
times here treated of. Previously, the wig, and dress 
(quaker cut) coat, had long had a successful run, but 
people visited the Continent more, especially France, 
and brought back French fashions, which at this time 
were particularly fantastic. The Prince of Wales, too, 
delighted in fine dress, and was " arbiter elcgantiarum " 
of his sex. At every levee, and public appearance, his 
dress was always expatiated on, and the " gilded youth " 
of the period, dressed up to him, and copied his manner, 
even to his bow. 

We, in our days, cannot afford to jeer at the accom- 
panying illustration, when we see, in the advertisement 
sheets of some of our periodicals, men's stays advertised, 
and even vividly depicted ; and, therefore, we must not 
throw the first stone of laughter at the fashions of 1788. 

Here we see the transition stage, the modification of 
the old courtly wig, with its accompanying powder, and 
black silk bag for the queue, now only to be seen pinned 
on to the coat collars of court officials, and extremely 
magnificent major domos, &c, and, also, we see the old 
court dress coat has now taken unto itself a collar, of 
that exaggerated description which was so much in 



5 2 Old Times. 

vogue during the next twenty years. Frilled shirts, and 
ruffles, still existed, and the curious custom of wearing two 
watches was the fashion. Here, again, history has some- 
what repeated itself in our modern double watch-chain, 
except that now only one watch is worn, the other side 
guarding a sovereign purse. 

Brighthelmstone or Brighton — beloved of George the 
Magnificent, whether as Prince, Regent, or King — was the 
place where the fashionable youth congregated, and there- 
fore we may take the following extract from the Morning 
Post (the doyen of the Daily Press) of 18th September, 
1788 :— 

"Brighton Dress. 

" The fashionable bathing dress, at Brighton, is chiefly a pair 
of buff trousers, with a slight jacket. 

" This is adopted by all the young men of the place, and a 
number of idle, sauntering land lubbers meet the eye every 
morning on the Steyne, that one cannot help wishing for a 
sturdy pressgang to give them useful employment, or at least 
keep them out of mischief. 

" After breakfast they are accoutred for the sports of the 
field. 

" The sporting dress is a brown jacket, with a multiplicity of 
pockets, on each side, that reaches from the bottom to the top, 
so that, from this appearance, it is somewhat difficult to 
determine which the fashionable tribe most resemble — a set of 
grooms, or a company of smugglers. 

" When the dinner hour arrives, after these sprightly and 
heroic gentlemen have ' slain their thousands, and te?i thousands,' 
according to their own account, in the field, with as little 
winking and blinking as Major Sturgeon himself, they then 
attire themselves in order to enjoy the pleasures of the table, 
and, however deranged they may afterwards be by convivial 
excess, they march or stagger away to the Rooms, as circum- 
stances may determine, and entertain the Ladies with elegant 
and decent gallantry." 







S 



! 



Old Times. 53 

About this time flourished that curious being, the 
" Macaroni" but most of his portraits are evidently such 
gross caricatures, that I have not cared to reproduce them. 
I have been compelled to draw upon the satirical prints 
of the period, as a future historian would take the pictures 
from Punch, if he wanted to hit the passing folly of the 
day ; but we must not forget that the satirical prints of the 
last century, did not their spiriting so gently as our 
modern caricaturists, but exaggerated in every way, in 
facial expression, and in costume. 

The following brace of Macaronis is taken from a print 
of the "Mock Duel, or a trip to Flanders" 26th May, 
1789 : and, although the costume is scrupulously correct, 
yet one can hardly help thinking that the designer of 
the wig, which was typical of the genus, has somewhat 
" drawn upon his imagination for his facts." The name 
Macaroni was applied, in derision, to those youths who 
had made the Grand Tour, and were fond, on their return, 
of shewing off their superior graces, and extolling the 
polished manners, and superior civilization, of the 
countries they had visited. In those days you were 
nothing unless classical. Modern languages were rarely 
taught, Science was all but unknown, Latin and Greek 
were the chief branches of education, and rich men were 
keen collectors of everything classical, marble statues 
and busts, bronzes, and coins — so Italy was naturally the 
bourne of these travelled youths, and John Bull, who then 
was, in the aggregate, a very stay-at-home animal, 
derided them, when they came back, with the epithet 
Macaroni, an elegant title derived from the popular 
Italian dish. 

The home-keeping youths imitated their brethren as 
well as they could, but it was at a very humble distance, 



54 Old Times. 

and their dress, though partially modelled on that of 
their confreres, was much exaggerated, and did not 
display such simplicity or good taste. — John Bull had a 
name ready for him ; a home-manufactured Macaroni 
was " a Jessamy." 

These Jessamies were, like the modern Mashers, 
effeminate, and comparatively harmless beings — entirely 
taken up with the contemplation of their external ap- 
pearance, and the attempted subjugation of the other 
sex. 

See the following quotation from the Morning Post 
4th July 1789 : — "There is not a man in the nation, no 
not even Lord Effingham, who bestows so much time 
and attention in rendering the external appearance of 
his head, elegant in the extreme, than the Earl of 
Scarborough. It is said that his Lordship keeps six 
French frizeurs, who have nothing else to do than dress 
his hair. Lord Effingham keeps only Five ! ! ! " 

The Jessamies, however, were only one class among 
the youth of the time, and I fear, by far the smallest. 
The majority were what we now should term " fast." 
Animal spirits in young men must have vent somehow. 

There were then no rowing, cycles, or other means 
of getting rid of the superfluous energy they possessed. 
Men's social habits were not at all of a " blue riband " 
nature, and, after dinner, the bottle circulated freely. 
So those who, like Charles Reade's description of modern 
athletic young men, knew " only one language, and lived 
principally in the open air," naturally became either " A 
choice Spirit," " A Buck," or " A Blood," descendants of 
the "Hectors," " Muns," Titiretus," "Scourers," and 
" Mohocks " — men that hustled honest folk, sang roaring, 
maudlin, filthy songs — men from whom no woman was 




/lJessamy.-/790' 




A Qiotcc^pirih 



A 8uc/(. 



Old Times. 55 

safe; who, armed with bludgeons, and going in com- 
pany in large numbers, boxed the watch, set the con- 
stables at defiance, and made night hideous with their 
brawls and shouting. 

Far be it from me to say that the whole youth 
of this age could be classed either in one, or other, of 
these two categories; there were good young men 
who probably "always came home to their tea," 
well dressed, well read, well mannered— such as "A 

Smart." 

As a rule, even now-a-days, a man when in the 
country, very seldom, or never, carries an umbrella: 
to a Londoner it is part of his costume. In Anne's 
reign the use of the umbrella was strictly set apart for 
the softer sex, and then only for those whose avocations 
compelled them to be out, whatever the weather. As Gay 
says in his " Trivia " — 

" The tuck'd-up sempstress walks with hasty strides, 
While streams run down her oil'd umbrella's sides." 

But for men, fie ! he must be an effeminate coxcomb 
who would carry one. Hear what fun was made of 
him {Female Taller, December 12) :— " The Young Gentle- 
man belonging to the Custom House, that for fear of 
rain borrowed the umbrella at Will's Coffee House in 
Cornhill of the Mistress, is hereby advertised that to be 
dry from head to foot on the like occasion, he shall be 
welcome to the Maid's Pattens.'" 

One John Macdonald, a footman, who wrote his own 
biography, helps us to fix a date when the use of them, 
by men, was so rare as to make the user singular. He 
says that he had " a fine silk umbrella, which he brought 
from Spain ; but he could not, with any comfort to him- 



56 Old Times. 

self, use it, the people calling out ' Frenchman ! why 
don't you get a coach ? ' " However, he " persisted for 
three months, till they took no further notice of this 
novelty. Foreigners began to use theirs, and then the 
English." Macdonald wrote in 1778. Jonas Hanway, 
the philanthropist, who had travelled much in Persia 
and the East, is said to have been the first Englishman 
who habitually carried an umbrella whilst walking in 
the street. He died in 1786. 

That it was not in general use in the year 1790, is 
evidenced by the somewhat sneering title of a " Rain 
Beau," or one that was afraid of a drop of rain. This 
illustration shews several modifications of fashion besides 
the use of the umbrella. The cocked hat had gone out — 
and the galling yoke of the " chimney pot " was being 
inaugurated. As yet it was limp, of felt, but there is 
the hideous head covering that has martyrised at least 
three generations. 

Then we cannot but notice that the hair has lost 
all trace of the wig — and is allowed to be worn " au 
naturel" A huge cravat swathes the throat, the coat 
is cut shorter, and more fly-away than hitherto, that 
knee breeches are disappearing, and pantaloons coming 
in, to be in their turn superseded by the modern 
trouser. Lastly, the term Macaroni, or Jessamy, is re- 
placed by Beau — which will soon have to give way 
to Dandy. 

Jimmy Lincum Feadle shows us the Beau of 179 1. 
Here the fashion is evidently imported from France — 
loud coloured striped coat — pantaloons, boots and all. 
The French Revolution was hastening on, rapidly, to its 
culmination, and, the younger Whigs, before the time 
came when they were utterly disgusted by the brutal 







/J §mart. - //#? 




A 7?a/n—6eau. 



Old Times. 57 

excesses of the French, copied the dress of the Revolu- 
tionary party. 

The accompanying illustration will show how far they 
succeeded. There is an elaborately studied negligence 
about the coat, and a height about the hat, which could 
never be of native production, whilst the bludgeon must 
have belonged to some " Merveilleux," (the class whom 
Bonaparte so cordially detested), and have been imported 
direct from Paris. The supercilious look, and the mincing 
gait, are warranted truly Parisian, and I have very little 
doubt but that Isaac Cruikshank sketched him from the 
life. 

The term " a Crop," is indicative of Revolutionary and 
Republican sympathies. Lucius Junius Brutus, and all 
the ancient Romans, wore their hair cut short — and so 
we must needs copy them, and have a revolution in hair 
cutting, just to show the outer world what our thoughts 
are on the present position of political parties. The 
elaborate hair of the Macaroni or the Jessamy, or even 
the negligent, but natural chevelure of the Beau, would 
not suit Republican simplicity, and, as in our own 
Commonwealth, the men of the Republic cropped their 
heads, as a testimony against their political opponents, so 
did they in 1791. The Duke of Bedford, especially, 
attracted public attention, by having his hair cut short, 
and many are the allusions to him, with respect to it, in 
the public prints. 

But with 1792 came another change of fashion, of 
which we get two views, back and front, and as they 
are by a lady (Miss Keate), they are probably not 
caricatured. 

Here we see a return to a more natural style of dress, 
the colours of which, in "Neck or Nothing" are well 






58 Old Times. 

chosen, and very becoming. Of course the awful cravat 
is of white cambric or muslin, and he wears a pink under- 
waistcoat, white over-waistcoat, and knee-breeches, a 
mulberry-coloured coat, and blue and white stockings ; 
hair powdered. 

" A back view of the cape " is not so felicitous as 
regards colour, being somewhat " prononce." The coat 
is green, breeches yellow, necktie yellow, stockings grey, 
powdered hair, and a liberal supply of powder on the 
back of the coat. 

In order to keep this hair powder on the hair, it was 
necessary to saturate it with some kind of grease, even 
if only a tallow dip, or rushlight, were used ; but an 
advertisement in the Times, of 7th February 1793, gives 
us some notion as to the antiquity of Bears' Grease, 
which must have been undoubtedly genuine, if the last 
paragraph can be taken as a fact : — 

"JUST KILLED, an extraordinary fine Fat Russian 
Bear, at Ross's Ornamental Hair and Perfumery Warehouse, 
No. 119 Bishopsgate Street (late Vickery's), three doors from 
the London Tavern. 

" The excellent virtue which the fat of Bears possesses, has 
been experienced by thousands of both sexes, and of all Ages, 
in this Metropolis. To those who have used the real Bears' 
Grease, it is evident no Grease whatever beside, retains its 
moisture so long upon the head, it being the only thing pos- 
sible to make the Hair grow thick and long, recover it after 
illness, prevent it falling off, or turning grey, during life : being 
the most efficacious remedy for making the Hair grow on 
Horses' knees when broken or chafed. 

"It is sold at is. per ounce, or 16s. the pound, to be seen 
cut off the Animal in the presence of the purchaser." 

Apropos of " cropping," take the following skit from 
the Times, January 21, 1794 : — 




J//nrr?y L/ncum fead/e - //$/. 




rf Scaremouc/?. 



Old Times. 59 

"Sir Robert Mackworth is at Bath, and seems to be 
no otherways distinguished than by the particularity of his 
equipage : he drives four horses of different colours in his 
phaeton, which has four wheels painted to correspond with the 
colours of the horses : in the midst of his badge of distinction, 
the bloody hand, is the figure of 4, which he explains in this 
way, four in hand. The motto 'This is the Tippy.' If any- 
thing can add to the folly of the whole it is that he intends to 
crop four opposite ears of his horses, to make room for four 
monstrous roses, of different colours, to match." 

The Court dresses which the Nobility and Gentry then 
wore, were magnificent, and the following are only a few, 
taken as an example, from the Times, June 4, 1794 : — 

"KING'S BIRTHDAY. 

"Yesterday, being the anniversary of the King's birthday, 
when His Majesty entered into the 57th year of his age, a 
Drawing-Room was held in the afternoon, and, at night, a 
Ball at St James'. The Gentlemen's dresses were in general 
embroidered silks and silk cloths : but one half were dressed in 
Regimentals. 

" His Majesty, as usual on his own Birthday, was in a plain 
suit of clothes. The best dressed Gentlemen whom we saw 
at Court, and indeed their dresses were very generally noticed 
for their taste and splendour, were — 

" Mr. Skeffington. 

" A brown spotted silk coat and breeches, with a white silk 
waistcoat richly embroidered with silver, stones, and shades of 
silk : the design was large baskets of silver and stones, filled 
with bouquets of roses, jonquilles, &c, the ensemble producing 
a beautiful and splendid effect. 

" The Hon. Thomas Anson. 

" A striped silk coat and breeches, with a white silk waistcoat, 
richly embroidered with white silk and dentelle : the waistcoat 
embroidered to match the coat. 



60 Old Times. 

"The Hon. Mr. Paget. 
" A brown and blue striped silk coat and breeches, with a 
white silk waistcoat, the suit elegantly embroidered with 
silver, stones, and bouquets of flowers. 

"Duke of Queensberry. 

"A striped, and spotted silk coat, and breeches, with diamond 
buttons, with a white silk waistcoat embroidered with silver, 
stones, and silk. 

"Marquis of Lorn. 

" A blue and brown striped silk cloth coat, and breeches, 
with a white silk waistcoat, embroidered with dentelle, and 
shades of silk. 

" Lord Willoughby de Broke. 

" A dark olive spotted silk coat, and breeches, with a white 
silk waistcoat, the suit richly embroidered in silver, coloured 
stones, and shades of silk." 

Anent Hair Powder, we have the following, which may 
be a libel : — 

" As a Frenchman cannot exist without a powdered head, 
and meal being so dear in France, the Beaux are under the 
necessity of wearing powdered whiting. Rouge is plenty enough, 
that article not being put in requisition : the ladies there- 
fore, as usual, wear their faces under red masks. They go to 
bed as blooming as Sol, when he retires to the Lap of Thetis : 
and rise as pale as Cynthia, in her nocturnal visits to the 
earth." — {Times, Nov. 29, 1794.) 

" Mother of Pearl buttons are likely to take the lead in the 
fashionable world, as they are both beautiful and ornamental, 
as well as durable and economical : on the contrary, those 
made of steel, and other metals, soon rust, and want frequent 
cleaning." — {Times, Dec. 16, 1794.) 

By the 35 Geo. III., c. 49 — a Duty was laid on Hair 
powder — and " the Crops," besides their (as we should 
term it) Radical tendencies, were extra unpopular among 



Old Times. 61 

the Tories, because they evaded the Hair Powder duty, 
by wearing none : — 

" A numerous club has been formed in Lambeth, called the 
Crop Club, every member of which, on his entrance, is obliged 
to have his head docked as close as the Duke of Bridgewater's 
old bay coach-horses. This assemblage is instituted for the 
purpose of opposing, or rather evading, the tax on powdered 
heads." — (Times, April 14, 1795.) 

"The following Noblemen and Gentlemen were of the 
party with the Duke of Bedford at Woburn Abbey, when a 
general cropping, and combing out of hair powder took place : 
Lord W. Russell, Lord Villiers, Lord Paget, &c, &c. 
They entered into an engagement to forfeit a sum of money 
if any of them wore their hair tied, or powdered, within a 
certain period. Many Noblemen and Gentlemen in the county 
of Bedford have since followed the example : it has become 
general with the Gentry in Hampshire, and the Ladies have 
left off wearing powder." — {Times, Sept. 25, 1795.) 

" The Bedford Crops. — Something has at last fallen from 
this party to entertain the Public. We hope they will find 
their heads cooler for this salutary operation. Dr. Willis 1 is 
of opinion, that more than one of them ought to have been 
shaved. If the Shavees think by publishing their names they 
will gain proselytes, till their absurdity is lost in the crowd, 
they are mistaken. Can it be supposed that a few drunken 
persons in a frolic, will be followed by the sober part of the 
people of England ? 

" The new Crop is called the Bedford Level. 

"An Irish Member once proposed in the House of Com- 
mons of that Country, to encourage the breed of Crops. We 
believe no such proposition is likely to be renewed upon the 
present occasion." — (Times, Sept. 29, 1795.) 

" The price of hair is considerably fallen. The wig-makers 
declare people are so afraid of having anything from the crops, 
that they can't sell a single peruke" — (Times, Nov. 23, 1795.) 

1 Dr. Willis was a Clergyman, who turned Physician, and his specialty 
was treatment of the insane. He attended George III. in his mental 
alienation, and was handsomely rewarded. 



62 Old Times. 

We get a curious insight into the manners of the 
young men of that day, in the following cutting from the 
Times, Dec. 14, 1795 :— 

" If the young men of the present day have not much wit in 
their heads, they have it at least in their hats. Amongst the 
pleasantries we have seen in this way, are the following : ' Not 
yours.'— « Hands off'— ' No vermin'— and 'Rip this as you 
would a hot potato' — and other charming sallies of refined 
and elegant vivacity. But the wittiest linings are the political 
ones : Upon a table, the other day we observed one perfectly 
clean, in which was written ' A 'vaunt, Guinea Pig!' and on 
the lining, in a very powdery hat, that lay in a window in the 
same room, were inscribed the two following monosyllables, 
« Off Crop: " 

" A Crop, who had begun to let his hair grow, was accused 
of aristocracy, and had his head shaved in the form of 
a horse-shoe at Wooburn, by a verdict of his Peers." — 
(Times, Dec. 30, 1795.) 

Clothes were dear in those days, as the following 
Tailor's bill shows — because we must reckon the value of 
money then at more than double what it is now : — 

" Address to the Public. — Those Gentlemen who are in- 
clined to a solicitude to their interests, the undermentioned 
prices will be found to be highly advantageous : — 

"G. Brown & Co., Taylors, No. 17 Sun St., Bishopsgate. 



A suit of the best Superfine Cloth 

A Coat and Waistcoat ditto 

A Coat ditto 

A suit of the best Second Cloth . 

A Coat ditto 

An Elastic Cloth Coat 

A Florentine, or Satin Waistcoat and 

Breeches of the best 
A pair of Breeches ditto 
A Waistcoat ditto 



^4 4° 
380 
2126 
3 10 o 
1 18 o 
220 



330 

1 18 o 
1 5 3 




y^?//7y f/?e frenchman 



Old Times. 



63 



A Cassimere Waistcoat and Breeches . 

A pair of Breeches ditto 

All sorts of Manchester Cotton Breeches 

according to their respective sorts and 

qualities, from 16s. to 
A superfine Cloth Surtout Coat . 
A ditto of Second or Elastic Cloth 
A ditto of Bath Beaver, from 24s. to 
A frock suit of Livery, all Cloth . 
A ditto, with Shag Breeches 
A Livery Surtout of Drab Cloth . 
A Coach-Box Coat ditto 
A Cotton Thicksett Frock and Waistcoat 
A Pillow Fustian ditto 

A Duffil Jacket and Waistcoat ditto 



£1 16 
1 1 



4 

o 

2 

11 

3 
12 

o 

3 

2 

1 1 

10 



" The above Prices are calculated for middle-sized men 
only, and the difference in all colours in grain, Blues and 
Greys, gilt or extra buttons, Waistcoat sleeves, &c, must be 
paid for extra." — (Times, April 16, 1795.) 

Among the eccentricities of Costume, was a Coat de- 
vised by the then Earl Spencer. He made a bet that 
he would cut off the tails of the coat which he then wore, 
and appear in public in a jacket, which, within a week, 
should be the fashion. He did so, and won his bet. 
Gillray caricatured the Earl, in a picture 17th May, 1792. 
Earl Spencer wears (in the picture) a blue spencer red 
coat with brass buttons, yellow trousers, and blue and 
white stockings. The " Threadpaper " has a green coat 
and grey stockings. Both have plenty of powder on 
the backs of their coats. 

The fashion is alluded to in a paragraph in the Times 
of 16th May 1795, and the " livery" therein alluded to is 
a covert satire on the " Windsor Uniform," which has 
been the semi-court dress, from George III.'s time to 
our own. It is said to have been taken from the uniform 



64 Old Times. 

of a Berkshire Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, of which 
the King was Colonel : — 

" The general fashion of wearing Spencers, reminds us of a 
wager laid by Lord March, who betted several years ago a 
considerable sum with some of his friends, that he would 
be able to introduce to general imitation, the most humiliating 
fashion he could think of. Accordingly he appeared several 
days successively about the Royal Exchange, dressed like a 
livery servant. The livery consisted of a blue coat, with 
crimson collar and cuffs ; and he gained the wager." — 
{Times, May 16, 1795.) 

The accompanying illustration by W. Hanlon (nth 
July 1795) is, of course, a caricature, but it is intended 
to show the eccentricities of dress, in which the " Crops " 
indulged. 

THE BOND STREET LOUNGE. 

AN IMPROMPTU. 

Modo vir, modo famina. — Virgil. 

{Times, January jth, 1796.) 

When men in Petty-Coats appear, 
No wonder Wives the breeches wear : 
Assuming manners quite robust, 
Game, swear, drive, box, or take a thrust. 
But happier far would be the case, 
Were each to keep their proper place : 
The fair ones wear the female dress, 
And men adorn their persons less ; 
For such the fashion of the day, 
They make it difficult to say, 
Whether the pretty things we meet, 
Parading through their fav'rite street, 
A Male or Female we may call, 
Their shapes are so equivocal. V. 

London Coffee-House, 
January yth, 1796. 




/Vec/f or Nothing 



-i/SZ. 



/\ Back View of "ihe Qpt 




yi ^pencer and a Thread Paper.- I J 92. 



Old Times. 65 

" The high kick of fashion is to wear only one spur, like a 
postillion, and to have an assortment of long whips tied 
up behind the curricle, in case of wearing them all out in 
Bond St., during a ride in the morning." — {Times, August 3, 
1796.) 

We need not go very far, any day in Winter, to see 
the young men of our day, doing the same thing, and 
looking extremely " Norse " — they never telling of the 
Chamois leather vests they wear. 

11 One of the latest roads to fame that any of our young men 
of ton have discovered, is to wrap their bodies carefully in 
flannel under the shirt, and to keep the coat and waistcoat 
quite open, to show the strength of their constitution, and set 
the snow at defiance." — (Times, January 2, 1797.) 

" Margate is already beginning to be crowded, as usual, with 
all sorts, and for all purposes, some to undo, and some to be 
undone ; wives to leave their husbands, and misses to procure 
theirs. Some tradesmen gone down to get, and others to get 
rid of their money : old maids to display tresses not their own, 
and the young men to show off Brutus heads, when the grand 
point is, whether their's or their type's in Ross's shop window 
have the most brains : perhaps there cannot be situations more 
calculated to display what Shenstone terms ' The various ways 
of dressing a calf's head.' " — (Times, August 5, 1799.) 

"Milan, July 15///. — In order to a due execration of the 
licentious dresses which our Government has forbidden, the 
executioner of this place, with his wife, appeared in the public 
walk. He was elegantly dressed, with his head a la Brutus, 
a large cravat which, concealing the chin, reached to the 
mouth : long pantaloons, hanging loose : and shoes, the points 
of which were a finger's length. His wife was quite a la 



66 Old Times. 

guillotine— naked shoulders, neck and arms." — (Times, August 

5> I799-) 

" Our emaciated beaux in their quilted lappelles and stuffed 
sleeves are like a dry walnut in a great shell." — (Times, August 
20, 1799.) 

This paragraph is easily explained by a reference to 
the two accompanying engravings. 

These peculiar garments were called "Jean Debry," 
after the French statesman of that name, who was born 
in 1760, died 1834. He was a somewhat prominent 
figure in the French Revolution, and, as his name was 
at this time much in men's mouths, he was made the peg 
on which to hang a coat. — " A French Taylor fitting John 
Bull with a Jean de Bry," is by Gillray, 18th Novem- 
ber 1799, and, although a gross Caricature, fairly repre- 
sents the garment. The tailor is in ecstasy with the 
fit. " Aha ! dere my friend, I fit you to de life ! dere 
is Liberte" ! no tight Aristocrat Sleeves, to keep from you 
vat you like ! a ha ! begar, dere, he only want von leetle 
National Cockade to make look quite a la mode de 
Paris ! " 

John Bull surveys himself in the looking-glass, grum- 
bling at his change of costume. " Liberty ! quotha ! 
why, zounds, I can't move my arms at all ! for all it 
looks woundy big ! Oh ! damn your French Alamodes, 
they give a man the same Liberty as if he was in the 
Stocks ! give me my old Coat again, say I, if it is a little 
out of Elbows ! " • 

"The items of a fashionable Taylor's bill are not a little 
curious at present : — Ditto, to pasteboard for your back ; ditto, 




/4 Jean Dsbry" M'oJ'keffington.) 




/reach 7a//op fitting John ou// wif/i a jean dc Z|V 



Old Times. 67 

to buckram for your cape \ ditto, for wool for your shoulders, 
and cotton for your chest. Shakespeare talks of Nature's 
Journeymen who make men indifferently, but our Journeymen 
Taylors make their customers of any form and dimensions they 
think proper." — {Times, Sept. 6, 1799.) 

Modern Costume. 

(i The Long-toed Shoe which now figures in Bond Street was 
regulated by an Act of Parliament so long ago as the rei<m 
of Edward III. No person under the rank of a Knight then 
had a right to advance his toe more than four inches beyond 
the natural extremity, . . If ever, in some centuries to come, 
the little hat, stuffed coat, and long-toed shoe of a modern 
fine Gentleman should be discovered in some Museum of 
Antiquities, or to survive upon the Stage, they would no 
doubt give birth to many learned doubts and extraordinary 
speculations. By the size of a pair of modern Leather 
Breeches, it will naturally be inferred that the present race of 
men were of a Colossal form. When we suppose in the same 
collection a pair of our Hussar Boots to have escaped the 
ravage of time, will not our descendants enquire by what 
descending scale of rapid decay and diminution mankind is 
hastening into the pigmy state, or the dwarf? Our Coats too, 
in which the Cotton, the Wool, the Tow, and all the et cetera 
of quilting, which now form one half of our bulk, will then 
only seem the remains of the art of the virtuoso : and the 
curious stuffing he has devised to represent the gigantic pro- 
portions of the wearer. It ought, however, to be known, for 
the honour of this commercial nation, that it is to the spirit of 
justice and liberality of our tradesmen, that this extraordinary 
augmentation of our bulk is to be attributed. Having doubled 
the price of every article upon us, they have very fairly given 
us double measure, both in our Coats, Boots, and Breeches. 
The Hatter, I am sorry to say, is not entitled to the same 
commendation, for he has of late years perpetually diminished 



68 Old Times. 

and circumscribed the little brim he allows us, in the exact 
proportion that he has advanced the price of it, so that the 
scarcity of felt is like that of bread, the less you have, the more 
you are to pay for it. I paid a guinea and a quarter for the 
last I bought, and I was ingenuously told that by the time 
a hat cost two guineas, it would exactly be the size and the 
weight of one. All these tradesmen, in a fairer sense than the 
hatters, make the most of their customers : but he to whom 
the nobler, part of man, the head, is committed, diminishes in 

the most scandalous manner the protection it requires 

— (Times, Sept. 20, 1799.) Brobdignag. 



Old Times. 69 



WOMEN'S DRESS. 

The earliest Lady's fashion book I can find in the 
British Museum, is " The Lady's Monthly Museum," &c. 
" By a Society of Ladies," — and it was published in 
1799 — or just the last year of which this book takes 
cognizance. But, luckily, the satirical prints supply the 
want, in a great measure, although they are somewhat 
exaggerated. From them we are able to see pictorially 
what might be hard to describe, and may be perfectly 
certain that they represent " the very last thing out " at 
their date of Publication. If, then, we have very little 
written about female attire, in 1788, and the next year, 
or two, we must be content with viewing the verce effigies 
of the belles of that time. 

Brighton, of course, was the fashionable watering- 
place, for there were the life and gaiety of the young 
Court, in contradistinction to the humdrum existence led 
by the King, Queen, and younger branches of the Royal 
Family, at Weymouth. So it will be interesting to know 
their habits at this famous sea-side resort. The 
Morning Post, 18th September 1788, has the following : — 

"The Ladies have no particular dress for the morning, but 
huddle away to the bathing place, in close caps, and gipsey bonnets, 
so that they look like a set of wandering fortune- tellers, who have 
just had the opportunity of pillaging the contents of a. frippery 
warehouse, with which they had bedecked themselves in haste. 

" It is to be remarked that the ladies do not atone for the 
negligence of the morning, by neatness, and elegance, during 
the rest of the day, but shuffle on something by dinner time, 



jo Old Times. 

covering themselves with an enormous nondescript bonnet, 
which, to the confusion of all order, they afterwards think a 
proper garb for the Assembly." 

In doors, the dresses were not so outre, as we see 
by the two illustrations taken from "The School for 
Scandal," ist August 1788. 

That ladies copied the eccentricities of male attire, 
and made them their own, we have proof in this cutting 
from the Morning Post, 15th January 1789 : — 

" Among other fashions lately introduced from Paris is the 
brace of gold watch chains now sported by our fashionable 
females. Some economical husbands may wish their wives 
were less imitative." 

The portrait of the Duchess of York (the Princess 
Frederique, Charlotte, Ulrique, Catherine, of Prussia, 
married to the Duke, November 1791), shews us the 
indoor dress of a lady of rank in 1792. She had a 
remarkably small foot, and many were the delineations 
of her shoes — actual size, &c. 

Of all curious freaks of fashion the following is the 
most incomprehensible, yet it doubtless obtained : — 

"The fashion of dressing, at present, is to appear prominent, 
and the stays are made accordingly. This is holding out a wish 
to be thought in a thriving way, even without the authority of the 
Arches Court of Canterbury — something in the French way — a 
philosophical desire to be conspicuously great with mischief, with- 
out any regard to law or reason. The idea was at first sent for- 
ward by a few dropsical Ladies." — {Times, March 25, 1793.) 

"The Wapping Land-ladies are all at the very pinnacle of 
the fashion. Nature has given them prominences which far out- 
picture the false mountains at the West end of the town. It is 
not only the fashion of appearing six months gone, that pre- 
vails with the ladies — but that of not having any waists, so that, 
even with their prominences, they may be called — No-body." 
(Times, April 15, 1793.) 




/4 Q>m'on-//88. 




fashions for 1/88 




I 



I 

J 




fashions for IJ88 




a 



3 




7J?e Di/chess of yor/c. 




The /duchess. 




Frail he s of Fashion ~ IJJ3. 




'The Hc/$hf- of Fashion —Jp3. 





The joiictte, n°r 



^c 








~[he Toilette R°2 




:**£§=&> 




Jhc Jbilctte, I7°3. 



Old Times. yj 

A series of prints were published which represent the 
amount of indebtedness, ladies were under, to Art, to re- 
pair the ravages made by Nature. 

No. I shows us most graphically the "levee au matin." 
— Tears drop from the eyeless socket — a yawn discloses 
the want of teeth, and, the handkerchief, tied round the 
head, which does service for a night cap, tells a sad tale 
of baldness. 

In No. 2 the defect of nature is being remedied by 
the insertion of a glass eye — which the subsequent 
illustrations prove to be very effective. 

No. 3 shows the triumph of the hairdresser's art ; and, 
certainly, it adds much to the ladies personal attractions. 

In No. 4 false teeth are being inserted, to replace 
those, of which unkind nature has robbed her. 

No. 5 applies the bloom of youth to the faded cheek, 
— a bloom that never yet deceived any one. 

In No. 6 the Belle has finished her toilette, and is 
now prepared to break all hearts. 

This series is attributed to Rowlandson — and, most pro- 
bably, is his work. It is called " Six Stages of making a 
face. — Dedicated with respect to Lady Archer," of which 
lady we shall hear more anon under the head of " Gaming." 

Waists, as may have been perceived by the last two, 
or three examples, have been gradually disappearing, 
until, as in " The Scarecrow," they became practically 
nil. High feathers were beginning to come in, and, in 
addition to the " panache," was worn a curious thing 
made of straw, very much resembling the " bristle plume" 
which used to be worn in the Shakos of our Engineers, 
and Artillery. In imitation of the men, the ladies' throats 
were swathed in voluminous wrappers. 

With very low bodices, and very high waists, came very 



72 



Old Times. 



scanty clothing, with an absence of petticoat, a fashion 
which left very little of the form to the imagination. I do 
not say that our English Belles went to the extent of some 
of their French sisters, of having their muslin dresses put 
on damp — and holding them tight to their figures till they 
dried — so as absolutely to mould them to their form, or 
that they ever discarded stockings, and went to balls with 
bare feet, and only wearing sandals, having on but the 
lightest of classical clothing — but their clothes were* of the 
scantiest, and we shall find that, as year succeeded year, 
this fashion developed, if one can call diminution of cloth- 
ing, development. Men made fun of it, vide the following 
from the Times, 1 2th August, 1794: — "Amongst prudent 
papas, the favourite toast at this time is ' The present 
fashion of our wives and daughters,' viz. No Waste." 

There was a very pretty song, called " Shepherds, I 
have lost my love, Have you seen my Anna ? " — and 
this was parodied as follows — the music being the same 
as the original song: — 



SHEPHERDS, I HAVE LOST MY WAIST. 

\—\ y— ' — >j H — j — t^-g- F 1 -*- 1 — ^j-t — Hagy -g-^-H 

Shep-herds, I have lost my waist, Have you seen my bo - - dy? 



.-i-l^ 






Sac - ri - need to mo-dern taste, I'm quite a 




_0_ — ^ — — r*7 l =* J- 1 ^— /-I — =^ 



For fashion I that part for - sook Where sages place the bel 






"Tisgone.andl have not a nook For cheesecake, tart, or jel 



ly. 




A £carecrocj — //?-? 




Shepherds f I have lost- my o/a/sf. — /79& 




JL 



Fo//ow/hg the Fashion. 




Fo//ow//7(f the Fash/ on. 



Old Times. 73 

" Never shall I see it more, 

Till, common sense returning, 
My body to my legs restore, 

Then I shall cease from mourning, 
Folly and fashion do prevail 

To such extremes among the fair, 
A woman's only top and tail, 

The body's banish'd God knows where !' 

That a fashion may become one person, and not 
another, is peculiarly exemplified by the two following 
pictures by Gillray, 9th December, 1794, both called 
" Following the Fashion : " — 



"St. James's giving the Ton, 
a Soul without a Body." 



" Cheapside aping the Mode 
a Body without a Soul." 



The tax on Hair powder was much objected to ; people 
had been used, for a long time, to grease, and powder 
their hair and wigs ; and, when the duty of a Guinea per 
head was passed, many left off using it. The illustration 
" Leaving off Powder, or a Frugal family saving a Guinea," 
was doubtless the fact in many a family. The man, in 
the coloured engraving, with his " crop," to our eyes 
does not look so singular, as the lady, with her " fausse 
chevelure " unpowdered looks so bad, that, no wonder, 
ladies reverted to their own locks, as we see in future 
illustrations. So also shall we see the " Cap " of the 
period, the length of which is most amusingly por- 
trayed. 

The wearing of false hair is of very early origin, inas- 
much as we possess, in the British Museum, an early 
Egyptian wig, and, in every age, we find women supple- 
menting their natural attractions, by the addition of some 
one else's hair. Here is a Hair-dresser's advertisement 
of 1795, wherein is not only mentioned the price, &c, of 



74 Old Times. 

hair, but shows the antiquity of the " Chignon," which, 
otherwise, many might think of modern date. 

"TO THE LADIES.— T. BOWMAN respectfully acquaints 
the Ladies, that he has entirely removed his Shop and Manu- 
factory to No. 1 02 New Bond Street, near Brook Street. 
Firmly relying upon the future favors and recommendation 
of his old Customers, and trusting to the superiority of his 
articles, he has augmented his stock of Chignons or Braids, 
from 600 to near 1000, in 14 shades (not 20) of brown 
colours, besides Auburns, Flaxens, &c, and in 8 lengths (not 
50) at 10s., 14s., £1 is., £1 ns. 6d., £2 2s., £3 3s., £4 4s., 
and £6 6s. each. Any colour matched in all the sizes in a 
minute. T. Bowman formerly gave a description of his Braids, 
but that has been copied by another and applied unto his 
own, without their possessing one requisite for which Bowman's 
Braids have been distinguished : and, not contented with 
slaying by twenties, he now kills by fifties. Bravo ! Captain 
Boabdill, fifty more, kill them ! ! ! As for the shades, what 
with Chinese hairs, mixing, and dying, he may have them (as 
he says) of every tint, but for real, natural, Brown colours. 
T. Bowman, with by far the greatest stock in the Kingdom, 
cannot make more than 14 shades; he can only challenge a 
comparison, and pledges himself to make good every assertion 
he has at any time made. His Brunswick fillets, an entire 
new and elegant article, with curls complete, fit either for 
morning or full dress, from 7s. 6d. to 10s. 6d. each, with 
Tetes, Borders, and every article in ornamental Hair, much 
cheaper than at any shop in town : having a very large stock, 
and dealing for ready money only, he has as yet made no 
advance on his old prices, although the price of hair is now 
double. Country orders, with money, or reference, duly 
observed. Chignons, &c, changed when not approved of, if 
not powdered." — {Times, June 22, 1795.) 

" Corsettes about six inches long, and a slight buffon tucker 
of two inches high, are now the only defensive paraphernalia of 
our fashionable Belles, between the necklace and the apron- 
strings. — ( Times, June 24, 1795.) 




$ 

& 



•is 

I 

XI 




Crop 




Characters in High Life. 




// /Modern fie//e fo/'/rffotfe /jbe/rrs or£*//s -I7S6. 



Old Times. j* 

"The annual City Assemblies, from the glowing colours 
which decorate the belles, may be now fairly styled red-hot 
balls.'''' — {Times, Dec. 29, 1795.) 

But Feathers were now used on the shafts levelled 
at the vagaries of Fashion. 

" At all elegant Assemblies, there is a room set apart for the 
lady visitants to put their feathers on, as it is impossible to 
wear them in any carriage with a top to it. The lustres are 
also removed upon this account, and the doors are carried up 
to the height of the ceiling. A well-dressed Lady, who nods 
with dexterity, can give a friend a little tap upon the shoulder 
across the room, without incommoding the dancers. The 
Ladies' feathers are now generally carried in the sword-case, 
at the back of the carriage." — {Times, Dec. 29, 1795.) 

"A young lady, only ten feet high, was overset in one of the 
late gales of wind, in Portland Place, and the upper mast of 
her feather blown upon Hampstead Hill." 

"The maroon fever has been succeeded by a very odd kind 
of lightheadedness, which the physicians call the ptereo mania, 
or feather folly." 

" The Ladies now wear feathers exactly of their own length, 
so that a woman of fashion is twice as long upon her feet as 
in her bed." — {Times, Dec. 30, 1795.) 

" We saw a feather in Drury Lane Theatre, yesterday even- 
ing, that cost ten guineas. We should have thought the whole 
goose not worth the money." — {Times, Jan. 6, 1796.) 

Here is a contrivance by which " A Modern Belle 
going to the Rooms or Balls " can go fully dressed, with 
her feathers fixed : — 

" There is to be seen in Gt. Queen Street, a Coach upon a 
new construction. The Ladies set in this well, and see between 
the spokes of the wheels. With this contrivance the fair pro- 
prietor is able to go quite dressed to her visits, her feathers 
being only a yard and a half high."— {Times, Jan. 22, 1796.) 



76 Old Times, 

The freaks of fashion, towards the latter end of 1795, 
are most curious. "Waggoner's frocks," and the 
" Petticoat " dress, are singular illustrations of feminine 
taste. This latter is noticed in a paragraph in the Times, 
27th Oct. 1795. " The present fashionable dress is the 
most simple imaginable. The petticoat is pinned to the 
Cravat, and the arms come out at the pocket holes." 

" The only new fashions that remain for our modern belles 
are certainly puzzling and difficult. There can be nothing new, 
but going either dressed or naked." — (Times, Jan. 27, 1796.) 

The following paragraph from the Times refers not 
only to the general absence of dress, but also to the famous 
(or infamous) Miss Chudleigh, a maid of Honour to the 
Queen, afterwards Duchess of Kingston, and tells the 
story of how the Princess of Wales, wife of Frederick 
(father of George III.), rebuked her for her nakedness. 

" One night, when the late Duchess of Kingston appeared at 
Ranelagh in a dress which may be compared with the undress 
of some of our fashionable belles, a handkerchief was thrown to 
her, not from the Prince, but the Princess of Wales." — (Times, 
March 5, 1796.) 

" Lady Godiva's Rout, or Peeping Tom spying out 
Pope Joan," is by Gillray, 12th March 1796, and is a scath- 
ing satire on the extremely decolletee, and diaphonous, 
dresses of the time. The fair one, whose uncovered 
bosom so attracts the candle snuffer, is intended to 
represent Lady Georgiana Gordon, afterwards Duchess 
of Bedford. 

" High Change in Bond Street" is by Gillray (27th 
March 1796), and is a most amusing caricature of the 
then prevalent fashions both of men and women. The 
" Bond Street Loungers," are depicted to perfection. 




UJa^oncrs /7vc/r -or-Ro do<)ys of Ijp- 




fnc Fashion. — Deer /7J5 







-I 

o 




M/'fb (Tunfc f'n /3ond '$**&■— /7&&. 



Old Times. 77 

11 At the late Fandango Ball in Dublin, a certain Lady of 
Fashion appeared in the following very whimsical dress: — Flesh 
coloured pantaloons, over which was a gauze petticoat, tucked 
up at each side in drapery, so that both thighs could be seen ; 
the binding of the petticoat was tied round the neck, and her 
arms were through the pocket holes. Her head dress was a 
man's pearl coloured stocking, the foot hanging down at the 
back of the head like a lappet, and in the heel of the stocking 
was stuck a large diamond pin, the tout ensemble not less 
novel, than ludicrous." — (Times, May 26, 1796.) 

" Whalebone- Veils are worn by all the fashionable dames at 
Weymouth. This invention is evidently borrowed from the 
head of a one horse chaise." — {Times, August 27, 1796.) 

" High heels are once more the rage ; there is, however, no 
scarcity of flats. During the reign of the flat sole, the Ladies 
make more faux-pas than ever, so that we need entertain no 
apprehensions for them, if they chuse to get upon stilts. What 
with high heels and high feathers, the better half of many an 
honest man is just one third part of herself." — (Times, August 
27, 1796.) 

" Fashion would be its own murderer, if it were to be con- 
stant and permanent. The last year's dress seems to abdicate 
entirely ; even the waist is walking down towards the hip ; 
and three straps, with buckles in front, have abridged so much 
of the usurpation of the petticoat. One cannot see so many 
Ladies of high ton with the straps over the bosom, without 
thinking how much better they might have been employed 
over the shoulders." — (Times, Aug. 27, 1796.) 

" Before the waist is .quite again in fashion, and while the 
thing exists (which will soon be incredible), we set down the 
measurement of a petticoat in the summer of 1796, which for 
a middling-sized woman is five foot and an inch." — (Times, 
Nov. 4, 1796.) 

" It would not be easily believed by our Great Grand- 
mothers, that their lovely daughters cannot make their appear- 
ance without a dozen combs in their heads, and as many 



78 Old Times. 

false curls and cushions. The victory over black pins is com- 
plete." — {Times, May 30, 1797.) 

" Horse Hair has risen near 50 per cent, since Wigs have 
become so much the rage." — (Times, April 27, 1798.) 

" The women at Paris are every day divesting themselves 
of some of the customary articles of dress, and the rage for 
fiudity is so great, that it is apprehended, even by the Parisian 
Journalists, they will shortly have the effrontery to present 
themselves to the public eye in a state of pure nature. One 
of them appeared a few days since in the Champs Elysees, 
in a simple robe of spotted black gauze, and shewed so much 
that little was left to guess. The spectators were struck with 
indignation at this flagrant violation of decorum, and she was 
compelled to make a shameful and precipitate retreat." — 
(Times, June 18, 1798.) 

" An Artist has advertised that he makes up worn out 
Umbrellas into fashionable Gypsey Bonnets. The transition 
is so easy, that he is scarce to be praised for the invention. 

" The Gypsey Bonnet is commonly worn by the Lancashire 
Witches."— (Times, July 7, 1798.) 

" We are very happy to see the waists of our fair country 
women walking downwards by degrees towards the hip. But, 
as we are a little acquainted with the laws of increasing 
velocity in fashionable gravitation, we venture to express, thus 
early in their descent, a hope that they will stop there." — (Times, 
April 15, 1 799.) 

" Straw in the head-dress, according to the laws and im- 
memorial customs of the stage, denotes the unsoundness of 
the brain it covers. Several of those useful and respectable 
young men, who make the campaign of Bond Street, have 
thought proper to invest their temples with the sacred symbols, 
and wear straw hats to give notice of their light-headedness." — 
(Times, July 4, 1799.) 

The Censor could also be severe on the harmless 
" Reticule." 



Old Times. 79 

" In the present age of political innovation, it is curious to 
observe the great veneration for antiquity which prevails in 
all our dresses and fashions. Queen Elizabeth's ruffs decorate 
our blooming belles ; and our beaux are puckered and stuffed 
on the shoulders a la Richard the Third. But what is still 
more remarkable, is the total abjuration of the female pocket. 
Those heavy appendages are no more worn at present than 
keys at the girdles. Every fashionable fair carries her purse 
in her workbag. Her money and her industry lie cheek by 
jowl : and her gambling gains lie snug by her housewife. Her 
handkerchiefs, her toothpick case, her watch, and her keys, if 
she has any, are the constant concomitants of her visits ; and 
while no part of the symmetry of her shape is altered or 
concealed by the old-fashioned panniers, she has the pleasure 
of laying everything that belongs to her upon the table wher- 
ever she goes." — {Times, Nov. 9, 1799.) 

" A dashing Lady of Fashion, inconvenienced by the new 
custom of carrying a bag with her handkerchief smelling-bottle, 
purse, &c, &c, went to a large party the other evening, 
attended by a Page, who was employed to present the articles 
as they might be wanted. The Page was well qualified to go 
through the fatigues of office, being well-made, active, and 
just one and twenty. Should the example be imitated, Pages 
will probably be more in request than waiting-women." — 
{Times, Dec. 7, 1799.) 

" If the present fashion of nudity continues its career, the 
Milliners must give way to the Carvers, and the most elegant 
fig-leaves will be all the mode. 

"The fashion of false bosoms has at least this utility, that it 
compels our fashionable fair to wear something." — {Times, 
Dec. 11, 1799.) 

With which most pungent criticism, we will take our 
leave of lady's dress. 



8o Old Times. 



NAVY AND ARMY. 

No history of England, that I know of, has ever given 
us so graphic a description of the ways and means for 
procuring men for the Navy, as the Newspapers of the 
time, and in this, as in many other things, their help is 
invaluable. 

When we find from what classes the Navy was re- 
cruited, we wonder at what the men went through, with- 
out much murmuring ; and, if their very moderate, and 
just, demands, had been met in a conciliatory spirit, or 
even, officially investigated, instead of being pooh-poohed, 
and shelved — there would have been no mutiny at the 
Nore, nor elsewhere. 

When afloat, sailors were kept in subjection, or as it 
was termed, discipline, by brutality, foul language, and 
a plentiful application of the lash, to be recouped by 
almost unlimited license, whilst on shore, or, for the 
matter of that, when afloat, if at home in harbour. When 
the Royal George went down, there were 200 women on 
board, and in Dibdin's song of " Wapping Old Stairs," 
the heroine plaintively reminds her temporary lover 
thus — 

" When I passed a whole fortnight between decks with you, 
Did I e'er give a kiss, Tom, to one of the Crew ? " 

When the War with France broke out, it was hardly to 
be imagined that Fishermen, and Merchant seamen, would 




& 

^ 



\ 



! 



Old Times. 81 

volunteer to leave their quiet occupation, to be bullied 
by petty, and other officers ; to be triced up, and lashed 
unmercifully, for even a venial fault; to be no better paid, 
nor fed than they were already; and to have an extra 
chance of death in a Naval engagement, even if the 
English were victorious, or the certainty of semi-star- 
vation in a French prison, if captured. So the State, 
wanting food for slaughter, stretched out its strong hand, 
and took it, by means of the pressgang. I shall have to 
recount a long list of " severe," or " hot," presses — and, 
first of all, in order that we may perfectly understand 
what a " press " was, and so thoroughly identify our- 
selves with the position, let us see the very minute, and 
vivid, description of Smollett, in " Roderick Random." 

" As I crossed Tower Wharf, a squat, tawny fellow, 
with a hanger by his side, and a cudgel in his hand, 
came up to me calling, ' Yo ho ! brother, you must come 
along with me.' As I did not like his appearance, 
instead of answering his salutation, I quickened my pace, 
in hopes of ridding myself of his company ; upon which, 
he whistled aloud, and immediately another sailor ap- 
peared before me, who laid hold of me by the collar, and 
began to drag me along. Not being of a humour to 
relish such treatment, I disengaged myself of the assailant, 
and, with one blow of my cudgel, laid him motionless on 
the ground ; and, perceiving myself surrounded in a trice, 
by ten or a dozen more, exerted myself with such 
dexterity and success, that some of my opponents were 
fain to attack me with drawn Cutlasses ; and, after an 
obstinate engagement, in which I received a large wound 
on my head, and another on my left cheek, I was dis- 
armed, taken prisoner, and carried on board a pressing 
tender; where, after being pinioned like a malefactor, I 

F 



82 Old Times. 

was thrust down into the hold, among a parcel of miser- 
able wretches, the sight of whom well nigh distracted 
me. 

" As the commanding officer had not humanity enough 
to order my wounds to be dressed, and I could not use 
my own hands, I desired one of my fellow-captives who 
was unfettered, to take a handkerchief out of my pocket, 
and tie it round my head, to stop the bleeding. He 
pulled out my handkerchief ('tis true), but, instead of 
applying it to the use for which I designed it, went to 
the grating of the hatchway, and, with astonishing 
composure, sold it before my face to a bum boat woman, 
then on board, for a quart of gin, with which he treated 
my companions, regardless of my circumstances, and 
entreaties. 

" I complained bitterly of this robbery, to the midship- 
man on deck, telling him, at the same time, that, unless 
my wounds were dressed, I should bleed to death. But 
compassion was a weakness of which no man could justly 
accuse this person, who squirted a mouthful of dissolved 
tobacco upon me through the gratings, told me ' I was 
a mutinous dog, and that I might die, and be damned.' 
Finding there was no other remedy, I appealed to 
patience, and laid up this usage in my memory, to be 
recalled at a fitter season. In the meantime, loss of 
blood, vexation, and want of food, contributed, with the 
noisome stench of the place, to throw me into a swoon ; 
out of which 1 was recovered by the tar who stood 
centinel over us, who at the same time regaled me with 
a draught of flip, and comforted me with the hopes of 
being put on board the Thunder next day, where I should 
be freed of my handcuffs, and cured of my wounds by 
the doctor." 



Old Times. 83 

Now let us see how the press worked — 

" The Press in the River Thames, for the three last days, 
has been very severe. Five or six hundred seamen have been 
laid hold of." — {Times, February 18th, 1793.) 

" On Wednesday night the press was very hot on the river 
Thames ; all the ships, both homeward, and outward, bound, 
were stripped of their hands ; not excepting two outward 
bound East Indiamen, which were to have sailed yesterday." 
— (Times, March 9, 1793.) 

"The press has been so hot, for seamen, since the order 
of Friday last, that three Tenders, full of men, have been 
dispatched from the Tower to the ' Sandwich ' guardship at the 
Nore." — (Times, March 27, 1793.) 

" A hot press has, for the last two nights, been carried on 
from London bridge to the Nore ; protections are disregarded, 
and almost all the vessels in the River have been stripped of 
their hands." — (Times, April 26, 1793.) 

"The sailors are so scarce, that upwards of 60 sail of 
merchants ships, bound to the West Indies, and other places, 
are detained in the River, with their ladings on board ; seven 
outward bound East Indiamen are likewise detained at Graves- 
end, for want of sailors to man them." — (Times, Jan. 7, 1794.) 

" The number of seamen to be voted for the service of the 
present year, including 12,000 marines, will be 85,000 men." 
— (Times, Jan. 29, 1794.) 

"There was a smart press on Monday, on the river, for 
seamen, and, in many of the avenues to the town, several 
hundreds were picked up, and put on board the receiving 
ship at the Tower." — (Times, April 2, 1794.) 

" Poole, Nov. 30. 

" This morning arrived in Steedland Bay, the ' Maria,' from 

Newfoundland, having some passengers on board, besides the 

crew ; the officers of the impress service expecting to meet 

some resistance, had called for military assistance, and 20 



^4 Old Times. 

soldiers, armed, went on board the tender, which went down 
the harbour, to meet the vessel ; when coming alongside, and 
finding the people obstinate, orders were given to the soldiers 
to fire, which they did ; the pilot (then at the helm), and two 
other men, were killed on the spot, and seven others danger- 
ously wounded, one of whom is since dead. Lieutenants 
Phillips and Glover, with all who were on board the tender 
are taken into custody, and the whole town is in the greatest 
commotion."— {Times, Dec. 3, 1794.) 

" That part of Mr. Pitt's plan for manning the navy, which 
recommends to the Magistrates to take cognizance of all idle 
and disorderly people, who have no visible means of liveli- 
hood, may, certainly, procure a great number of able bodied 
men who are lurking about the metropolis, if properly enforced 
But experience teaches, that, unless the Magistrates see that 
their Runners do justice to the public, this salutary measure 
may be in a great measure defeated, from the interest which 
the Runners are known to have, in nursing those vagabonds, 
which the law enacts should be laid hold of "—(Times 
Feb. 11, 1795.) 

" A meeting on the subject of the Navy was held last week 
at Newcastle, the result of which was, the choosing of a Com- 
mittee, three of whom are to confer with Mr. Dundas— ' to 
recommend the suspension of the impress, to send into actual 
service the gangs and crews of the tenders, (amounting it is 
said, from seven to ten thousand,) to increase the wages of 
seamen in the navy, and to pay half of it, monthly, for the 
support of their families.'"— (Times, Feb. 11, 1795.) 

"An Embargo is about to take place on all the shipping 
in our ports, which it is thought will last six weeks, or until 
20,000 seamen are procured. The embargo was to take place 
as last night."— ( Tim es, Feb. 19, 1795.) 

" There was a very hot press in the river, on Friday nioht 
last, when several hundred able seamen were procured. One 
of the gangs, in attempting to board a Liverpool trader were 
resisted by the crew, when a desperate affray took place in 
which many of the former were thrown overboard, and the 



Old Times. 85 

Lieutenant who boarded them, killed by a shot from the 
vessel." — {Times, June 9, 1795.) 

" A very general search for seamen has taken place in the 
river, for several nights past ; such is the greatest want of 
hands to mix on board the men-of-war now ready at the Nore, 
Chatham, Sheerness," &c. — (Times, June 18, 1795.) 

"The Press gallies are out in the river, night and day, in 
order to pick up men ; the demand for seamen being still very 
great from the vast quantities of shipping now employed in 
Government service." — (Times, Aug. 29, 1795.) 

"One of the Juries that was impannelled on che Coroner's 
Inquest, to examine the body of one of the unfortunate men 
that was killed in the affray that took place between the press- 
gang, and the sailors, belonging to the ' Maria ' of Poole, 
have returned their verdict of Wilful Murder against the two 
Lieutenants of the Navy." — (Times, Dec. 5, 1794-) 

The following instructive little story will shew how 
mutinies were made : — 

" The mutiny which existed several days on board the 
' Culloden ' of 74 guns, and which, it is said, originated in 
the wish of the crew to have the ship docked, previous to her 
sailing for the West Indies, was, on Wednesday, settled by 
an order from the Admiralty in the following manner : — ' That 
several Captains were to go on board and inform the crew, 
unless they immediately returned to their duty, the " Royal 
George " of 1 10 guns, and " Queen," of 98 guns, would directly 
be laid alongside them.' They were allowed half an hour to 
consider the matter. The officers, and others, who chose to 
leave the ship, were at liberty so to do. The ship's company 
several times wanted to make terms, which could not possibly 
be complied with : in about twenty minutes they all agreed to 
return to their duty; 12 of the ringleaders were instantly 
seized, and put in irons, and will no doubt be tried by a Court 
Martial for the same. During the time the ship was in this 
mutinous state, the crew flogged several marines because they 



86 Old Times. 

would not join them, and would have punished the whole, 
had they gone below." — (Times, Dec. 13, 1794.) 

" The cause of the mutiny, on board the ' Culloden,' was 
briefly this. In coming into Spithead, the ' Sampson,' and 
' Culloden,' both run a-ground. The former was a good deal 
damaged : the latter lost only her rudder, which could easily 
be repaired at Spithead, but the ' Sampson ' was obliged to be 
carried into dock. Some of the seamen of the ' Culloden,' in a 
mutinous manner, expressed their doubts of the safety of the 
ship : and, upon being remonstrated with, insisted upon going 
into harbour." — (Times, Dec. 16, 1794.) 

Which were right, the Sailors, or the Admiralty ? 

Here is a curious case, which shows the want of men 
to man the fleet, and how unscrupulously even magis- 
trates lent themselves against all justice, and equity, in 
helping to kidnap men for the use of the Navy Ser- 
vices : — 

"PUBLIC OFFICE, BOW STREET— A master brick- 
layer, of the name of Whitehead, brought his apprentice 
before the sitting magistrate, on a charge of having stolen a 
scaffolding board, value under uinepcnce: he had his choice, 
either to enlist as a soldier, or to be sent on board the fleet : 
to both of which he objected. The Magistrate then ordered 
a letter to be written to the Regulating Captain, Tower Hill, to 
have him sent on board the Navy." — (Times, Jan. 5, 1795.) 

On this, one of the spectators addressed Mr. Bond, 
and told him he was acting improperly. 

" Who are you ? " says Mr. B . "lama Mr. Thompson, 

a Member of the House of Commons for Evesham : and I 
tell you that you act illegally." " Do you tell me, sitting 
here as a magistrate, that I act illegally ? " " I do : for if 
the boy has committed a crime, he is not to be punished 
by you, or any other justice : it is to the laws of the land, 
and to them alone, that he is amenable : and I say, that it 



Old Times. Sy 

is a violation of the liberty of the subject." Mr. Bond ob- 
served, that the King wanted men : and did not Mr. Thompson 
think that it was proper to procure those for him, who had 
forfeited their liberty? Mr. T. replied, that he knew that 
the King did want men, but that that was a very improper 
mode of coming at them. Mr. Bond then observed, that 
probably Mr. T. might investigate it in the House of Com- 
mons : but whether he did or did not, he should act as he 
thought proper for that time. He then sent for Major Lecson, 
and had him enlisted. Mr. Thompson signified as much to 
him, as that it should be brought before the House." 

(On Monday, 5th Jan., the matter was introduced in a 
speech of Mr. Thompson's, on the Habeas Corpus Bill, 
but nothing was done.) 

Jack did, occasionally, get some prize money, but 
nothing ever came up to the " Hermione " in 1762, when 
each ordinary seaman had about ,£800 for his share ; but 
when we look at the disparity between the Captain's and 
Sailor's share, we can enter into the spirit of the Sailor's 
prayer, before an engagement, that the shots might be 
apportioned, like the prize money, — the greater part 
among the officers. 

" By the determination of the Lord Chancellor in favour 
of the captors of the St. /ago Register ship, Admiral Gei.i. 
will get, as his proportion, near ^100,000 prize money. All 
the captains of his fleet will divide about ^30,000, and so 
downwards in proportion. The precise value of the St. /ago, 
Spanish ship, retaken in April 1793, from the French, whicli 
the Lords of Appeal adjudged to the captors, on Thursday 
evening last, is ,£935,000." — {Times, Feb. 4, 1795.) 

" The first payment of the immense St. Jago prize is 
commenced, Captain Sir A. Douglas having received his 
share. The following is the declared proportion of the specie 
only: Each Captain's share, ;£i 3,920 ; Lieutenant's share, 
,£910; Warrant officer's share, ^"612; Petty officer's share, 



88 Old Times. 

^140; Foremast-man's share, ^26. Besides two seventh's 
shares of the whole in reserve, till the question, whether the 
Boyne, and Powerful, have a right to share with the Squadron. 
The above statement is independent of the valuable cargo, and 
bullion, which are yet to be shared. The Admirals shares are 
not yet declared." — (Times, March 21, 1795.) 

" Saturday, the 26th inst, the sailors on board the Sea Horse 
frigate, had 2800 dollars served out to them at Portsmouth, 
and leave of absence for 48 hours' recreation on shore. This 
ship shares the whole of the Spanish prizes taken by her, and 
carried into Portsmouth. Their cargoes consist principally of 
about 300,000 dollars and gold doubloons, and about 120,000 
raw hides, tallow," &c. — (Times, Dec. 2, 1796.) 

"The Spanish prize, taken by the Raven brig, one of 
Admiral Earl St. Vincent's squadron, which was sent home, 
now lies at Deptford, where she is strongly guarded, and no 
persons suffered to go on board, till she has gone through a 
complete search, as it is suspected some other valuables, 
besides the Platina, of which 4000 ounces have been taken 
out and sold, are hid. Platina is a metal of the colour of 
silver, and about one eighth heavier than gold. None has 
ever been seen in Europe, at least in any quantity, but in 
Spain where it is consigned to the Crown, from South 
America." — (Tunes, Sept. 20, 1797.) 

" We stated several days since, that it had been determined 
by Mr. Pitt to alter, very materially, the Bill now before the 
House of Commons, for manning the navy. The principal 
alteration will be the taking off the burthen on ship-owners, of 
finding men before their ships can clear out ; instead of which 
they are to advance a certain proportion of money, and Com- 
missioners are to be stationed, at the out-ports, to find men 

out of this fund. The measure proposed is as follows, that 

each Port shall, according to the number of seamen belonging 
to it, raise a certain number of men— that these men shall be 
fixed by Ballot— that those who have enrolled themselves to be 
balloted, shall receive a certificate of having done so, which 
shall secure them against pressing— that no man shall be per- 



Old Times. 89 

mitted to serve on board a merchant ship, under a very heavy 
penalty, without such a certificate, that no ship shall be 
suffered to proceed from any Port, till the number of men 
required from the Port shall be raised ; and that those who do 
not enrol themselves, shall be liable to be apprehended." — 
(Times, Feb. 18, 1795.) 

As we see by the following paragraphs, the parishes 
offered bounties to fill up their quota of sailors : — 

"The Parish of St. James', Westminster, having, in a public 
manner, signified their wish, to raise twenty-five men, pursuant 
to the statute, to serve in His Majesty's Navy, had, by Wednes- 
day last, completed that number : and the regulating-officer, 
in the course of the afternoon, examined them, and found 
them all extremely proper for If is Majesty's service: and, 
on Thursday, they were examined and certified, by the 
Parochial Magistrates, when the men requesting to have ^7, 
the third part of the bounty-money, advanced to buy slops, 
bedding, and for other purposes, it was immediately complied 
with." — {Times, Apr. J, 1795.) 

(Advt.) "Ancient and Loyal City of Westminster. 

"At a MEETING of the Vestries, Church-wardens, Over- 
seers, and the principal inhabitants, of the Parishes of St. Mar- 
garet, and St. John the Evangelist, Westminster, in St. Mar- 
garet's Vestry Room, on Thursday, the 2nd day of April 1795, 
it was agreed to give a bounty of Twenty-five Guineas each 
to Twenty Men, to be raised for the Naval Service of His 
Majesty King George, in defence of Old England. All able- 
bodied men, willing to serve in His Majesty's Navy, are desired 
to apply, from the hours of nine in the morning till four in the 
afternoon, at the Vestry Room, in St. Margaret's Churchyard, 
Westminster, this, and the following days, Sundays excepted. 
To any man, who shall be approved by the Regulating Officer, 
part of the Bounty will be immediately paid, on his enrolment, 
either to himself or to his wife and family, or to any other 
person he may appoint to receive the same, and the remainder 
upon his being mustered on board of ship. He will have an 



90 Old Times. 

opportunity of leaving a power for part of his wages and prize 
money, to be paid monthly for the support of his family, who 
will also be under the care, and protection of a kind and 
benevolent parish : and if his conduct is approved, he will 
have the preference, on his return, of any employment the 
Parish can give him. None need apply but able-bodied men. 
No volunteer, who shall enter as above, can be taken out of 
His Majesty's Service, but for a criminal matter. N.B. Persons 
enrolled, are not liable to serve more than three months after 
the War, if arrived in any port of Great Britain. 

"By Order, T. Drake, Vestry Clerk." 

—(Times, Apr. 9, 1795.) 

" From the returns of the Regulating Officers, received at 
the Admiralty, it appears that on the average, about half the 
men for the navy, are likely to be raised throughout the 
counties, and that the deficiency will be paid in money. The 
average price given in the Eastern Counties is ^25 per man ; 
so that the fine of ,£10 added to it, will make the parishes 
defaulting, advance ^35, in lieu of a man, for every 68 
assessed houses." — (Times, Apr. 9, 1795.) 

"A change is about to take place in the Naval Uniform. 
Epaidets are to be worn — two by Flag Officers, and these to mark 
their rank ; two likewise by Post Captains, demonstrative of their 
rank ; one, on the right shoulder, by Masters, and Commanders, 
and one on the left by Lieutenants." — (Times, June 5, 1795.) 

"The City of London has now made up its quota of 5704 
Seamen, under the Act which laid an embargo on all outward 
bound vessels, until 20,000 men were raised for the use of the 
Navy. Among this number are about 1600 able seamen, who 
count each for two ordinary seamen. The expenses of raising 
them in London, are found to be much more moderate than 
the men raised in the country ports." — (Times, Sept. 24, 1795.) 

" One Samuel Caradise, who had been committed to the 
House of Correction, in Kendal, and there confined as a 
vagabond, until put on board a King's ship, agreeable to the 
late Act, sent for his wife, the evening before his intended 






Old Times. 91 

departure. He was in a cell, and she spoke to him through 
the iron door. After which, he put his hand underneath, and 
she with a mallet, and chissel, concealed for the purpose, 
struck off a finger and thumb, to render him unfit for His 
Majesty's service." — ('Times, Nov. 3, 1795.) 

"All superfluous ornaments to the heads, and sterns, of 
King's ships are, we understand, in future to be discontinued. 
Instead of a figure at the head, a scroll is to be substituted, 
and the sterns are to be as plain as possible." — (Times, 
Sept. 9, 1796.) 

" The Navy Board have given orders, that ships of war shall 
be ornamented with carved work at their heads, and sterns, as 
formerly, which mode, some months since, had been sus- 
pended." — (Times, Oct. 6, 1797.) 

"Anecdote of Captain Drury of the ' Powerful.' 

"About an hour before the action with the Dutch Fleet, he 
assembled his men, and thus addressed them : — ' You are a set of 
damned, blackguard, mutinous, rascals, and you know I think 
so of you all : we shall soon see whether you have any cour- 
age : I have only this to say to you, you see the Dutch ship 
that we shall soon be along-side : if you don't silence her in 
40 minutes, I shall know what to think of you. — Now return 
to your quarters.' Turning to the Master, he said, ' Do you 
take care that these rascals, may not have to complain that 
they were not near enough.' In 20 minutes the Dutch ship 
struck her colours, and the ' Powerful ' bore away to assist the 
' Venerable.' After the action, the Captains of the fore-castle 
came aft, and asked Capt. Drury if he still considered them 
a rascally set ? ' No,' said Capt. D., ' your behaviour has 
perfectly satisfied me.' ' Will you then shake hands ?' said the 
men, which he did most heartily, and assured them that he should 
never reproach them again for what had passed, and would, 
on his part, entirely forget that anything had ever happened. 
They then gave him three cheers, and, now, Capt. Drury is 
almost idolized by the crew." — (Times, Nov. 16, 1797.) 

"The French Government has ordered 16 sail of the line, 



92 Old Times. 

1 8 frigates, and 12 ships of war of a smaller size to be built. 
Good news this for Old England ! It saves us the trouble and 
expense of building them ourselves, as they are sure to find 
their way into our ports." — (Times, JVov. 26, 1798.) 

" Lord Camelford. 

" By the Leeward Island Mail, which arrived yesterday, we 
have received some very circumstantial advices of what passed 
in the West Indies, respecting Lord Camelford, who was 
tried by a Court Martial, on the 13th of January last, at Fort 
Royal Bay, for the murder of Lieut. Peterson, and acquitted. 

"Antigua, January 23, 1798. 
"On the 13th inst. died, at English Harbour, Charles 
Peterson, Esq., first Lieutenant of H.M. ship Perdrix. This 
event was occasioned by a dispute between the deceased, 
and Lord Camelford, upon the right of commanding at English 
Harbour. Lord Camelford commanded H.M. sloop-of-war 
the Favourite, by virtue of an order, or warrant, from Admiral 
Harvey ; and Mr. Peterson, though an older Lieutenant than 
Lord Camelford, had lately served on board that ship under 
his command, but, having been removed to the Perdrix, and 
Lord Camelford not having a commission as Master, and 
Commander, Mr. Peterson, being then at English Harbour, 
supposed himself to be the Commanding Officer, and, under 
that idea, issued some orders to Lord Camelford, which were 
answered by other orders from Lord C. to Mr. P. Upon 
Mr. Peterson's refusal to obey these orders, a Lieutenant with 
a party of Marines were sent to put him under arrest, and 
Mr. P. prepared for resistance, and ordered the crew of 
the Perdrix to arm in his defence. But, before any conflict 
took place, Lord Camelford arrived, went up to Mr. P., 
demanded if he would obey his orders, or not, and, upon 
being answered in the negative, he immediately shot him 
dead upon the spot. An inquest was taken by the Coroner, 
the next day ; but the Jury, not being willing to take upon 
themselves the determination of the question upon whom the 
command at English Harbour had devolved, found only that 
the deceased had been shot by Lord Camelford, in conse- 
quence of a mutiny." — (Times, April n, 1798.) 



Old Times. 93 

Extract of a letter from an Officer in H.M. ship 
Vengeance, dated Antigua, February 9 : — 

" Lord Camelford appears to me to be a new character in 
his Class. He is very severe in carrying on duty ; seldom ties 
up a man but he gets six or seven dozen lashes, which is a 
more severe punishment in this country than what is produced 
by giving the same number in a northern climate. 

" Although his Lordship is a Master, and Commander, he 
makes use of no swabs (gold shoulder knots), but still appears 
in a Lieutenant's uniform. His dress is indeed extremely 
remarkable ; all the hair is shaved off his head, on which he 
wears a monstrous large Gold-laced cocked-hat. He is dressed 
in a Lieutenant's plain coat, the buttons of which are as green 
with verdigrease, as the ship's bottom ; and, with this, all the 
rest of his dress corresponds." 

Extract of a private letter. 

" Cronstadt, August 2. 

" Our countrymen who have been employed at Revel, in 
conducting the embarkation of the Russian troops, have been 
honoured with great marks of attention from the Emperor, 
and his Family. 

" His Imperial Majesty requested the Nile lugger, in which 
Captain Popham went to Petersburgh, to be brought up close 
to his palace at Peterhoff, where he went on board, accom- 
panied by only one Nobleman. The lugger was immediately 
got under weigh, and, there being a fine breeze of wind, His 
Majesty was highly surprised, and gratified, at the swiftness of 
her sailings. After a two hour's cruise, he was landed again 
at the palace, when the lugger gave him a royal salute. 

" It appears the account he gave of the English vessel had 
greatly excited the curiosity of the rest of the Royal Family, 
as, next day, Captain Popham was honoured with the company 
of the Empress, the Emperor, Four Princesses, and Three 
Princes, with their retinue, when they were, of course, treated 
with a sail, at which they were highly delighted, and, with 
great condescension, partook of some ship beef, and biscuit. 
The Emperor was particularly attentive to everything on board 



94 Old Times. 

the lugger, visiting every part of her, and, when the sailors 
were hoisting the sails, he insisted on helping for once, to set 
the sails of a vessel belonging to his gracious Ally, and actually 
hauled the rope with the men. The Empress begged that the 
crew would sing ' God save the King,' which was instantly 
complied with, to Her Majesty's entire satisfaction. 

" Captain Popham was presented by the Emperor, with an 
elegant snuff-box set with diamonds, and with a valuable ring 
from Her Imperial Majesty. His Majesty has likewise knighted 
Captain Popham, conferring on him the Order of St. John of 
Jerusalem. Lieutenant Pratt, Captain Popham's Assistant in 
this business, has also been presented with a gold snuff-box, 
from the Emperor, and a handsome gold watch and chain, 
from the Empress," — {Times, August 28, 1799.) 

Was the under-mentioned lady the veritable heroine 
of the ballad of " Billy Taylor ? " 

" There is at present in the Middlesex Hospital, a young, 
and delicate female, who calls herself Miss T — lb — t, and who 
is said to be related to some families of distinction ; her story 
is very singular : — At an early period of her life, having been 
deprived by the villany of a trustee, of a sum of money be- 
queathed her by a deceased relation of high rank, she followed 
the fortunes of a young Naval officer, to whom she was attached, 
and personated a common sailor before the mast, during a 
cruise in the North Seas. In consequence of a lover's quarrel, 
she quitted the ship and assumed for a time the military char- 
acter : but her passion for the sea prevailing, she returned to 
her favourite element, did good service, and received a severe 
wound, on board Earl St. Vincent's ship, on the glorious 14th 
of February, and again bled in the cause of her country, in 
the engagement off Camperdown. On this last occasion her 
knee was shattered, and an amputation is likely to ensue. 
This spirited female, we understand, receives a pension of 
^20, from an illustrious Lady, which is about to be doubled." 
{Times, Nov. 4, 1799.) 

In 1793, the war with France, which was, on and off, 
to last so long, was an accomplished fact — and one of the 




British Lact/es Patriotic Presents to thefrmy. -//S3. 



Old Times. 95 

first notices thereof, at least, pictorially, makes fun of 
the good intentions of the patriotic ladies of England, 
towards the personal comforts of the army. 

Men were most urgently wanted — but it had hardly 
come to the following : — 

" Major Hanger has made a proposal to Government, rather 
of a singular nature, to raise a corps of men, from among the 
convicts. He has received his answer, that, at present, 
Government can give no countenance to his application." But 
it did come. — (Times, March 23, 1793.) 

" We have already mentioned that a number of convicts in 
Newgate, under sentence of transportation, have within the last 
few days, been permitted to enter into marching regiments. 
The crown debtors in the various prisons, have received similar 
offers." — (Times, Oct. 9, 1795.) 

" The French Emigrants, who are to serve in the legion now 
assembling at Jersey, have received orders to keep themselves 
ready, at a short notice, to repair to their destinations. About 
400, have enlisted in town, and between 500, and 600, at 
Jersey." — (Times, Jan. 29, 1794.) 

Here is a very early Notice of Volunteers : — 

"We are happy to hear that the Grand Juries of the 
different counties, intend to recommend the forming Volunteer 
Companies, to augment the Militia. The Grand Jury, at 
Reading, greatly approved this measure, and the sum of 14, 
or ^1500, has already been subscribed, at that place, for carry- 
ing it into effect." — (Times, March 8, 1794.) 

" The following are the terms for raising Independent 
Companies. For a Company, a Lieutenant on full pay is to 
raise fifty men, including three corporals, to be allowed five 
guineas levy money, and the pay of three Serjeants, and two 
drummers, during the levy, and to receive ^150 from the suc- 
cessor to his lieutenancy. A Lieutenant on half pay, to raise the 
like number, but to be allowed eight guineas levy-money. For 



96 Old Times. 

a Lieutenancy, an Ensign on full pay is to raise twenty men, 
including a corporal, and to be allowed five guineas levy-money 
with the pay of a sergeant, and a drummer, during the levy. 
An Ensign on half-pay, to raise the like number, but to be 
allowed seven guineas levy-money." — {Times, March 7, 1794.) 

" The following, we understand to be the heads of the plan 
to be proposed for the consideration of the Lords Lieutenants of 
the different counties, for the internal defence of the Kingdom. 

" 1st. The Militia is to be augmented by Volunteer Com- 
panies, or by an additional number of privates to each com- 
pany, in the option of His Majesty. 

" 2ndly. Volunteer Companies are to be formed in particular 
towns : in those particularly situated on the sea coast, for 
purposes of local defence. 

" 3rdly. A certain number of soldiers for each Regiment : to 
act as pioneers, as well as persons in different parishes, and 
districts, not attached immediately to the Militia, to act in the 
same capacity : and certain places to be appointed for their 
rendezvous, particularly upon the sea coast ; but these to be 
ready to assist the regular forces upon every emergency. 

" 4thly. Volunteer Troops of Fencible Cavalry are to be 
raised, consisting of from 50, to 80, men per troop, which are 
liable to serve only during the war, and within the Kingdom : 
the Officers are to have temporary rank only, and are not to 
be entitled to half pay : arms, clothing, and accoutrements, to 
be furnished by the Government, but the levy-money to be 
found by the persons raising such troops, or troops, as also the 
horses ; for the horses, however, they are to be allowed the 
Government contract price. The person who, upon the above 
terms, raises two troops, is to have the temporary rank of 
Major ; he who raises four, that of Lieutenant Colonel ; and 
he who raises six, that of Colonel. 

" Fifthly, Bodies of Cavalry are, besides, to be raised within 
particular districts, or counties, to consist of the Gentlemen 
and Yeomanry, or fsuch persons as they shall recommend, 
according to a plan to be approved of by the King, or by the 
Lords Lieutenant, under authority from His Majesty; the 
Officers are to receive Commissions from His Majesty, and 
the Muster Rolls are also to be approved of by His Majesty, 




>3 






Old Times. 97 

or by the Lords Lieutenant, at particular periods to be here- 
after fixed ; no levy money is to be given, and the horses are 
to be provided by the Gentry or Yeomanry who compose the 
particular corps ; the arms and accoutrements, are, however, 
to be supplied at the public expense. Such corps are to be 
exercised only at particular times, fixed by warrant from His 
Majesty, or by the approbation of the Lords Lieutenant. 
They are to be liable to be embodied, or called out of their 
respective counties, only by special direction from His Majesty, 
in case of actual appearance of invasion ; and to be liable to 
be called upon by order from His Majesty, or by the Lords 
Lieutenant, or Sheriff of the county, to act within the county, 
or in the adjacent counties, for the suppression of riots and 
tumults. In either case, they are to receive pay as cavalry, 
and are to be liable to the provisions of the Mutiny Bill." — 
{Times, Mar. 13, 1794.) 

Qualifications. — " The officers of the London Militia, 
according to the Bill now in the House of Lords, are to be 
qualified, according to the Act of the 26th George III. Cap. 
107, Sec. 8. 

Real or Personal. 
Field Officers . . . ^"300 ,£5,000 
Captains . . . . 150 2,500 
Lieutenants .... 30 750 

Ensign .... 20 400 

One Moiety in the City, the other in any part of the Kingdom 
seised of an estate, either in law, or equity, the claim or grant 
whereof was originally made for 20 years, of the same annual 
amount, to be a qualification." — (Times, June 26, 1794.) 

"An extraordinary circumstance lately happened to a 
sheriff's officer, in the neighbourhood of Covent Garden. Hot 
with juniper berry, not the Tuscan Grape, he had an idea of 
beating the Carmagnols ; and in consequence, going to a 
recruiting party in Bow Street, said he would enlist. The 
Captain of the party gave him a shilling, in the usual phrase 
of His Majesty's name: — he said he must have more : — a guinea 
was given him in His Majesty's name, to serve so and so ; he 

G 



98 Old Times. 

took it, and departed. The matter thus rested for five or six 
days, when he came back to return the money, which he said 
he had taken in a frolic. The money was refused. He said 
he would be revenged, and, having a writ some days after, 
against one of the enlisted recruits, he went to the rendezvous 
house to execute it, where the Captain took him up as a 
deserter, and sent him to the Savoy Prison, from whence he 
has been released by a Habeas Corpus, contrary, as military 
men say, to the law by which the military are governed. 
This will occasion a most curious contest." — {Times, June 
3°, I794-) 

"Something like a legal ynutiny has, it seems, already arisen 
in the long robed Corps of Volunteers. By a clause in their 
engrossed agreement, every Member neglecting to attend the 
regular drill, is bound to pay a fine of three shillings and four- 
pence, towards purchasing parchment to new head their drums. 
Against this penalty being levied, some of the absentees have 
demurred, on the plea that the instrument is not valid in law, 
from its not being drawn on a six shilling stamp." — {Times, 
July 17, 1794.) 

"A melancholy accident happened yesterday, about one 
o'clock, at the Recruiting Office, Angel Court, Charing Cross. 
A sergeant having kidnapped a man, for the better securing 
him, had confined him in a back-garret at the top of the house, 
after he had cut off his hair, to disfigure him, and, tying his 
hands behind him, and locking the door, left him by himself. 
By some means, the man got his hands loosened, and chose 
rather to risk his life by jumping from the window, than 
suffer himself to be any longer in their clutches ; accordingly, 
he attempted to pitch upon a leaded roof, which was about 
half way to the bottom, but, unfortunately, jumping short, he 
fell back, and his head falling against the wall, his skull was 
fractured in such a shocking manner, that he died in about an 
hour afterwards. The populace were so much enraged at this 
shocking enormity, which we are sorry to believe is too often 
repeated, that they almost demolished the Recruiting Office. 
The mob had increased to so great a degree at ten o'clock 
last night, that it was found necessary to call out a party of the 



Old Times. 99 

Horse Guards, for the protection of the neighbourhood." — 
(Times, Aug. 16, 1794.) 

This was a serious riot. The mob at that time was 
peculiarly excitable, and had a great deal more of its 
own way than it has now. So a spark only was 
wanted to make a flame. This was found in a 
rumoured case of kidnapping for the army ; impressing 
for the navy could be understood, because it had 
obtained from time immemorial, that when the king 
wanted men to man his war vessels, he took seamen, 
or fishermen, but this was something new, and must 
be put down, otherwise no man was safe. The truth 
was not scrupulously adhered to, and the print shops, 
ever eager to make money by pandering to the passions 
of the hour, published exaggerated, and heartrending 
pictures, of the way in which the army was recruited, 
and, altogether, a very pretty riot was got up. 

" On Saturday morning, early, a mob again collected before 
Angel Court, Charing Cross, and attacked the house from 
whence the unfortunate young man had thrown himself 
into the street. The populace proceeded to gut the house, 
throwing the furniture out of the windows. The street was 
covered with feathers from the beds which were torn to pieces : 
they were proceeding to demolish an adjoining house, when 
the military were called in, and several officer's detachments, 
both of horse, and foot, again paraded the streets at Charing 
Cross. The mob having assembled again yesterday morning, 
and becoming very riotous, a troop of Horse Guards was very 
properly ordered out, and two or three of the principal rioters 
about the King's Arms Public House, taken into custody. 

" It is some satisfaction that we have heard the Coroner's 
report on the investigation of this unpleasant business. A 
most respectable jury sat five hours, on Saturday night, to 
consider of the verdict : and, after the most minute testimony 
of several witnesses, it was proved that the young man, whose 



ioo Old Times. 

name was Howe, and lived at Wandsworth, was a Lunatic, 
and had been several times confined by his friends. He had 
himself offered to enlist ; no blame whatever attaches in this 
instance, to the people of the house. We trust that this 
impartial enquiry will satisfy the minds of every one, and that 
there will be no more mobs." — {Times, Aug. 18, 1794.) 

"In consequence of a mob again assembling at Charing 
Cross, yesterday evening, the Horse Guards were again 
called out, and paraded the streets till midnight." — {Times, 
Aug. 19, 1794.) 

"THE RIOTS IN LONDON. 

"We had flattered ourselves with the hope, that the very 
fair, and public, investigation which took place on the 
Coroner's Inquest, which sat on Saturday last on the body 
of the unfortunate man, Howe, who threw himself out of a 
window of a Recruiting House, would have satisfied every 
man's mind, that Howe was a Lunatic, and had been so for 
many years past : and that it was in a fit of Lunacy, that he 
destroyed himself. We hoped after this investigation, all 
kinds of mobs would have ceased. 

"We are sorry to observe, that the people are instigated to 
riot by the false representations daily made in those Jacobin 
prints, which are, at all times, so eager to announce, and 
magnify, every public misfortune. One of these yesterday 
asserted, 'that a poor woman with five children, and herself 
now pregnant, suspecting the crimps had decoyed her husband 
into a house in Whitcomb St., watched it, and by chance saw 
her husband chained to the floor. ' An evening paper of yesterday, 
observes ' that the guards, both horse and foot, were as usual, 
grossly insulting inoffensive passengers,' and it concludes with 
a piece of advice to these military gentlemen, 'that they are 
not always with musquets, and swords, in their hands, and 
that the people may be roused to resistance.' Now we know 
that no gentlemen could have observed greater caution than 
the military have done on this occasion : and the above 
remarks have no other object than to excite riot. 

"On Tuesday last, John Kerr and John Ruggle, were com- 



Old Times. 101 

mitted to Newgate for stripping a man of his cloaths. Kerr is 
the man who keeps a house in Whitcombe Street, Charing 
Cross ; which was assailed by a mob on Tuesday night, and 
very much damaged. It was owing to this riot, that the 
Horse Guards were again called out, and paraded the streets, 
through the night, as well as yesterday, to keep the peace. 

" Six of those who were found in Kerr's house throwing the 
furniture out of the windows, were taken into custody, and, 
yesterday morning, were all committed to Tothill-fields 
Bridewell. 

"A riot also was attempted to be raised at a recruiting- 
office in Tooley St., Southwark, on Tuesday night. 

" Yesterday, a mob assembled before a house of the same 
description, in Shoe Lane, at which several stones were 
thrown : and, at length, it became so serious, that the Lord 
Mayor was called upon to interpose his assistance, and 
attended, and, by the interference of a few constables, the 
mob dispersed, but, in the evening, the number of people con- 
tinuing to increase, a party of guards were sent from the 
Tower, and the Lord Mayor, at eight o'clock, read the Riot Act. 
The mob, after being driven out of Shoe Lane by the soldiers, 
rushed suddenly to Bride Lane, where they broke open a 
house which had been employed as a recruiting-office, and 
proceeded to throw the beds, and some little furniture that 
remained in it, out of the windows ; but, hearing of the 
approach of the military, they fled, saying they had plenty 
more business to do. It was reported, at the time this paper 
was going to press, that the Recruiting Offices on Mutton Hill, 
and Cow-Cross, near Clerkenwell Green, had likewise met a 
similar fate." — (Times, Aug. 20, 1794.) 

"On Wednesday, the examinations closed respecting Mrs. 
Hanna, who kept the recruiting office at Charing Cross, when 
she was acquitted, no evidence being adduced to criminate 
her. This acquittal has been the consequence of a very 
scrutinizing investigation. 

"The riots were not confined, on Wednesday night, to Fleet 
St. and the neighbourhood, but extended to the Raven, in 
Golden Lane, and the Sash, in Moorfields, and very much 
damaged the Rum Puncheon, in Old St., and a private house 



102 Old Times. 

in Long Lane. They were all recruiting houses. A recruiting 
house, opposite Fetter Lane, in Holborn, was completely 
gutted. 

"Yesterday, bills were very properly stuck up in different 
parts of the town, to the following purport : — ' You are 
earnestly requested to depart hence, and not by remaining, 
encourage others to stop, by which a crowd will be accumu- 
lated, and your personal liberty may be endangered.' Parents 
were likewise warned from suffering their children to appear 
abroad. 

" It is greatly to be apprehended that there exists a scheme 
to raise mobs, and disturb the peace of the metropolis. On 
Friday, and Saturday, during the riots at Charing Cross, great 
pains were taken to persuade the people, that there were 
subterraneous passages from the houses to the Thames, and 
that men were sent off in the night. On Monday, and 
Tuesday, hand-bills were distributed, telling the people that 
men, and children, were kidnapped, and sent off to Canada, 
and elsewhere. Nothing can be more notoriously false than 
such assertions." — {Times, Aug. 22, 1794.) 

" On Thursday night there was an attempt made to raise a 
riot in St. George's Fields, at the Milk House, the corner of 
the London Road, the master of which is a temporary Ser- 
jeant to recruit for some of the volunteer corps ; but by the 
spirited behaviour of the recruits, soldiers and light horse 
volunteers, in that quarter, the incendiaries did not proceed 
to acts of violence. It was evidently apparent that the mob 
was led on by persons above the common rank, whose sole aim 
is, if possible, under the idea of some pretended grievance, to 
raise a general riot in the metropolis. On Thursday, several 
persons were committed to the New Compter, by the Lord 
Mayor, for being concerned in the riot in Shoe Lane; and 
six men were committed to Newgate, from the Public Office, 
in Worship Street, for being concerned in the riots at the Sash, 
in Moorfields, and at the Black Raven, in Golden Lane. 

" In the course of the same day, several attempts of a 
similar nature were made in different quarters of the town, 
which were prevented, however, by the appearance of the 
regular military, and, in some places, by the City Horse 



Old Times. 103 

Volunteers, who have been out on duty every day. The 
recruiting offices in Drury Lane, and at Shoreditch, were 
attempted to be demolished. As the continuance of these 
riotous proceedings is of the most dangerous nature, we trust 
that some more decisive steps will be taken, by Government, 
for their suppression." — (Times, Aug. 23, 1794.) 

"The activity of the Magistrates, and the arrival of the 
Oxford Blues, to assist the Civil Power, caused the mobs to 
be cautious of appearing on Saturday. They found that it 
was determined to fire upon them if they did not desist ; and, 
therefore, they thought personal safety the best policy. A 
very rigid, and severe, investigation will, no doubt, be made 
into the practice of crimping, and a stop put to the disgraceful 
manner of recruiting." — (Times, Aug. 26, 1794.) 

" Old Bailey. 

" Five men were indicted for a riot, on the 20th of last 
month, at a Public House, known by the name of the Old 
Sash, in Moorfields. After a trial of five hours, the Jury found 
all the prisoners — Not Guilty. John Osborn and R. Piggott 
were indicted for riotously assembling on the 20th August last, 
in Golden Lane, and beginning to demolish the dwelling 
house of Hugh Case. Piggott found guilty, sentence, Death. 
Osborn, not Guilty. J. Strutt, was afterwards tried for begin- 
ning to demolish the dwelling house of W. Ostiff, in Johnson's 
Court, Charing Cross, and, after a trial of several hours, was 
found guilty, sentence Death. Antony Purchase, and R. 
Warnbeck, were next tried, for beginning to pull down the 
house of R. Lazell, and found guilty, sentence Death. They 
were both of them strongly recommended, by the Jury, to 
mercy, on account of their youth, and the goodness of their 
character." — (Times, Sept. 22, 1794.) 

" Sunday evening, an affray happened in Whitcomb Street, 
between a recruiting party, and the mob, on account of the 
former attempting to trepan a young man, in a state of intoxi- 
cation. The windows of the recruiting-house were broke, and 
the affair, which for some time bore an alarming aspect, was at 



104 Old Times. 

last terminated by the arrival of a party of the Horse Guards." 
(Times, Dec. 23, 1794.) 

RIOT IN ST. GEORGE'S FIELDS. 

" However expedient it is to recruit our Land Forces, and 
strongly as it is requisite to make our Navy respectable, and 
superior to the enemy, yet, in attaining these essential points, 
the constitutional liberty of the subject should be preserved. 
It is, therefore, with a degree of regret, we mention that the 
power of enlisting men for the Land Service, in particular, has 
been entrusted to persons who have abused the confidence 
reposed in them, and who have used the most unjustifiable 
means to accomplish their purposes. As an instance, among 
others that have previously been brought before the public, 
we are authorised, from the circumstances of the case, to state, 
that on Friday last, a very great mob assembled in London 
Road, leading from the Obelisk, in St. George's Fields, to the 
Elephant and Castle, at Newington Butts, and, having intima- 
tion that a number of men were there imprisoned by a certain 
description of Crimps, they attacked the house where these 
persons were confined, demolished the windows, and released 
eighteen men, who were chained together by hand-cuffs, and 
other iron ligaments. 

"The Borough Magistrates, on hearing of this outrage, im- 
mediately sent down their officers : and the Acting Recruiting 
Serjeant being taken into custody, he was, after a short 
examination, committed to the New Gaol. The circumstances 
which led to the discovery of this imprisonment, was, that 
of kidnapping a pot-boy, who, before he was chained down, 
contrived to break a pane of glass in the drawing-room window 
(for the house was a private one, and elegantly furnished), from 
whence he cried out ' Murder ! ' This alarmed the neighbour- 
hood, and, as it had been suspected by them, that persons 
were illegally confined there, the doors, and windows, were 
soon demolished, and the prisoners liberated. The Serjeant, 
and his crew, had two women of the town genteelly dressed up 
for the purpose of inveigling young men into the house, which 
they styled their lodgings, where the deluded were instantly 
hand-cuffed, and, about three or four o'clock, in the morning, 




s 

I 

¥ 
I 



Old Times. 105 

sent off in coaches, hired for the purpose, to the country. On 
Saturday, several more youths, who were confined in other 
parts of the Fields, were released by the Magistrates, amidst 
the plaudits of a numerous multitude of spectators." — {Times, 
Jan. 12, 1795.) 

" On Tuesday night some disturbance happened in Charles 
Street, Westminster, occasioned by some crimps having in- 
veigled a boy from his parents, and lodged him in a house 
there. The mob broke the windows of it, and the boy was 
rescued. We have every reason to hope that the most severe 
punishment will be inflicted on the crimps, Government having 
taken every possible pains to prevent such abuses." — {Times, 
April 16, 1795.) 

"Yesterday evening, about seven o'clock, a very consider- 
able mob assembled about Charing Cross, and, under the 
pretence of delivering a man from the Crimping House, they 
attacked the house, which is up a little court near Northum- 
berland House, and threw all the furniture out of the windows. 
Charing Cross was covered with feathers. The mob became 
so numerous, and disorderly, that it was found necessary to 
call in the assistance of the Horse Guards : and the Riot Act 
was twice read by a Magistrate. The street was much thronged, 
and the tumult continued, when this Paper went to press : 
although there had been no other act of serious mischief. No 
one can detest the business of Crimping more than we do : 
but we have strong reasons to believe that this is very fre- 
quently made a stalking horse with the factious, to provoke a 
riot." — {Times, July 12, 1795.) 

" A Mob collected themselves again, last night, at Charing 
Cross, when, after making every one pull off their hats, as they 
passed, they proceeded to Mr. Pitt's, in Downing St., and 
broke several windows in his house; but, the Guards being 
immediately called out, and appearing in sight, very soon dis- 
persed them. 

" The Mob, afterwards, went over Westminster Bridge, and 
paraded to St. George's-fields, where they attacked the Royal 
George Public-house, near the Obelisk t and threw all the fur- 
niture of it into the road, and there burnt it. They gutted 



106 Old Times. 

another Recruiting house, in Lambeth-Road, and, afterwards, 
made a bonfire of the furniture. This was mistaken by many, 
to be houses on fire. There were some of the Mob who kept 
watch on the outside of the houses, to give notice of the 
arrival of the military, who did not come till after the furniture 
of these two houses were consumed. The Mob compelled 
the inhabitants of the houses in the neighbourhood, to put up 
lights. 

" The Riot at Charing Cross, on Sunday night, was begun 
by a very few persons who wished for mischief, and called out 
the words, Crimps, and Kidnappers ! The damage was done 
almost instantaneously, and the villains escaped, leaving a 
numerous assembly of people, who were only drawn together 
by an idle curiosity, on the Surrey-road, near the Circus. 
Yesterday morning, however, about seven o'clock, it was 
assailed by a mob, and, notwithstanding it was well defended, 
and that the door was plated with iron, it was forced, and the 
prisoners rescued. Last night the mob again assembled about 
half past eight o'clock, near the Obelisk, in St. George's fields, 
where they gutted another Recruiting Office, and threw the 
furniture into the road, of which they made a bonfire. At first, 
the mob consisted only of about one hundred men, but the 
flames soon attracted great numbers. About nine, the Horse 
Guards arrived, and soon dispersed the crowd. We wish they 
had come sooner, as it is extremely injudicious to the public 
interest, that such indecent sights should be repeated. It was 
very well known that a Mob meant to assemble, and, of course, 
the Military should have been at hand, to meet it. Several 
persons were much hurt, in not being able to disperse soon 
enough, which ought to be a warning not to mingle in such a 
crowd. The Duchess of Gloucester, who was at the Circus, 
with her daughter, was escorted home by a party of horse." — 
{Times, July 14, 1795.) 

" The Riots continued on Monday evening in St. George's 
Fields, until the Military arrived to disperse the mob. Several 
persons were taken into custody, and lodged in the watch- 
house." — {Times, July 15, 1795.) 

The way in which the patronage in the Army was 



Old Times. 107 

managed, was a crying shame — children in their cradles 
had Cornetcies presented to them, and their promotion 
went on several steps before they left school. We hear 
of the natural consequence, in the following extract from 
the Times, 4th Jan. 1794 : — 

"We are extremely sorry that our public duty should call 
upon us to make any unpleasant remarks on the officers of 
our Army abroad, but repeated letters from the Continent, 
received by all descriptions of persons, agree in saying that 
there is a great want of Subordination among our troops. 
We shall not enter into particulars on this subject, as our 
only object is, that this observation should meet the eye of 
the Commander-in-Chief, and other General Officers, and 
that they should take the matter into their serious considera- 
tion. The evil is certainly increased by having so many 
young men introduced into the Army, and placing them 
over the heads of veteran Soldiers." 

" The scandalous abuses which have been so often, and so 
justly, complained of, as detrimental to the public service, of 
children being taken from school, and appointed Officers, 
cannot be too soon remedied, though it will be a Herculean 
task to cleanse the Augean stable. In mentioning the follow- 
ing circumstance, we have certainly no kind of ill-will towards 
the party concerned ; but it is a fact, that a child, not fourteen 
years of age, is now under orders for embarkation at Plymouth, 
who has been taken from school, to join his regiment at St. 
Domingo, as Captain ! ! ! It is impossible for any man, who 
has the interest of his country at heart, to hear of such abuses 
without commenting on them with the utmost severity. The 
fault is not with Government, but is attached to the custom 
which prevails in officering the army ; a custom which cannot 
be too soon corrected." — {Times, Feb. 10, 1795.) 

" The Duke of York has ordered circular letters to be sent 
round to the Colonels of Regiments, desiring a return to be 
immediately made to his Office, of the number of Captains in 
each Regiment, under twelve years of age ; and of Lieu- 
tenant Colonels under the age of eighteen ! ! ! The very 



108 Old Times. 

scandalous abuses that have, of late, crept into the mode of 
officering the army, are such, as to have demanded a very 
serious enquiry : for numberless are the evils that have resulted 
from it, besides that it has given so much disgust to veteran 
Officers, whose fortunes were not adequate to the purchase of 
rank. Various are the instances of boys having been taken 
from school, to take the command of Companies of Regi- 
ments." — {Times, March 20, 1795.) 

"Over a Warehouse for fashionable dresses, in Fleet St., 
is written up 'Speculum modorum,' or, the mirror of the 
fashions ; and several young Gentlemen of the Guards are 
actually learning Latin, in order to understand them. Others 
have sent for the Alphabet, in gingerbread, as preliminary 
education." — {Times, Oct. 27, 1795.) 

" An alteration, we understand, is shortly to take place in 
the uniform of the officers of all the regiments of the line. 
The present full dress coat is to be abandoned in favour of a 
very short one, without any lace, or lappels, which the officers 
are always to wear when on duty, but discretionally at other 
times." — {Times, Nov. 16, 1797.) 

"A number of baby officers have threatened to sell out of 
the Guards. They purchased for the privilege of wearing 
handsome regimentals, and the new uniform they say is so 
ugly." — {Times, Nov. 20, 1797.) 

" Some of the sucking Colonels of the Guards have ex- 
pressed their dislike of the short skirts. They say they feel 
as if they were going to be flogged." — {Times, Nov. 21, 
I797-) 

Kelsey's was a famous fruiterer's, &c, in St. James's 
Street, and we are here presented with one of the boy 
officers, whose legs cannot reach the ground, and who 
has not yet lost his childish predilection for " Sugar 
Plums." As a foil to him is given Colonel Burch, of 







Heroes T(zcruih'ny at feisty s 1797. 



Old Times. 109 

the Royal Household Troops — who is actively engaged 
in demolishing Ice Creams. 

The following paragraph tells a sad tale : — 

"The late order of the Cabinet for furnishing all His 
Majesty's troops with bread, in the same manner as if in 
camp, namely, a loaf of six pounds weight for five-pence, will, 
we doubt not, have the desired effect in preventing a continu- 
ance of those outrages, to which the military, in many parts of 
the kingdom, have been compelled, by absolute want." — 
(Times, April 27, 1795.) 

But this order was modified, as we see. 

"A new regulation has been made throughout the whole 
Army, that instead of the additional allowance of Bread- 
Money, each Soldier is to receive 8d. per day clear." — (Times, 
Oct. 2, 1795.) 

The fate of a prisoner of War is always hard, and, 
as a rule, they are not too luxuriously treated. When 
first we had large quantities of French prisoners over 
here, they were nearly starved, but, afterwards, their lot 
was much ameliorated. Probably they were better treated 
than our people who were imprisoned in France, for, if 
the following letter can be believed, they certainly were 
neither luxuriously housed, nor fed. 

"The following is an Extract of a letter from an Officer 
of the 'Castor' Frigate, captured some time since, by the 
French, dated Quimpemzzx Brest, Feb. 27, 1795 : — 

'I wrote by Lady Ann Fitzroy, which I hope you have 
received ; we were in a very bad state at that time : but since 
she has been gone, we have been a great deal worse. They 
now serve out nothing but bread, and horse-beans, for three 
weeks, or a month, together : and, when they do give meat, it 
is but six ounces of salt pork per man. It would make your 



HO Old Times. 

heart ache, to see our poor sailors, without money, without 
cloaths, worn down by sickness, and emaciated to the last 
degree, fighting over the 'body of a dead dog, which they 
sometimes pick up, and devour with the most voracious 
appetites : and it is a fact, that the head, and pluck, of a dog, 
sold for 30 sous, the other day. Such scenes as this, was I 
obliged to undergo : but I am now in a house allotted for the 
officers, and am rendered very comfortable by the friendship 
of our second lieutenant, Mr. Hadaway. I am the only sur- 
viving midshipman of four, who came here, belonging to our 
ship. I have lost all my hair by sickness : but I live in hopes 
of seeing Old England, and my friends again.'— {Times, April 
16, 1775-) 

"Several persons escaped from prison, bear the strongest 
testimony of praise towards Lady Ann Fitzroy, late a 
prisoner of war at Quimper, in France, who perhaps, suffered 
more insults, and bad usage, from her jailors, than any of her 
rank ever suffered before : but, regardless of her own distresses, 
she made it her sole business to alleviate those of her fellow- 
prisoners : made shirts, and caps, for all those in need, besides 
purchasing some hundreds of jackets, and trowsers, which she 
distributed amongst her unfortunate countrymen, in want of 
cloathing. Her Ladyship, also, every day, had a great quantity 
of veal, and soup, dressed, to distribute amongst the sick. 
Her unparalleled benevolence saved the lives of hundreds." 
— {Times, June 12, 1795.) 



"TWENTY GUINEAS BOUNTY. 

"Gray's Inn, in the county of Middlesex, 13th Dec, 1796. 

"To all able-bodied MEN, willing to serve in His Majesty's 
Army.— The Hon. Society of Gray's Inn will give Twenty 
Guineas, without any deduction whatever, to any Man who 
shall be approved by the Regulating Officer. No Volunteer 
who shall enter, as above, can be arrested for Debt, or taken 
out of his Majesty's Service, but for a criminal Matter.— Appli- 
cation to be made any Day, from the Hour of 10, till 3 o'clock 
at the Steward's Office, Gray's Inn. ' 



Old Times. 1 1 1 

"Persons enrolled are not liable to serve more than one 
Calendar Month after the end of the present War." — {Times, 
Dec. 17, 1796.) 

"At the Roscommon Assizes, Lord Viscount Dillon was 
cast in a verdict of £60, for illegally confining a poor mechanic, 
a fortnight underground, with a view of forcing him to enlist." 
— {Times, Sept. 20, 1797-) 

" On Saturday last, the sentence of a Regimental Court 
Martial was carried into execution, on a private soldier, belong- 
ing to the 2nd Battalion of the Breadalbane Fencibles, now in 
the Castle of Edinburgh. He received 1000 lashes, and was 
drummed out of the Battalion, for having, while on sentry at 
Leith, on the night of the 15th of September last, loaded his 
piece, and fired the same into the house of an inhabitant, the 
Civil Magistrates having delivered him over to the Military 
Law." — {Times, Oct. 7, 1797.) 

The sale of Commissions is here openly acknow- 
ledged, although it was not allowed, vide the two fol- 
lowing advertisements in the same paper (1798, Jan. 
15):- 

" Militia. — Any young Gentleman wishing for an Ensignsy 
in a highly respectable Regiment of Militia, where he will have 
the opportunity of forming the very first connections, may, on 
certain conditions of honour, solely between the parties, be so 
respectably introduced. The Advertiser, who is of the Church, 
and of undoubted character, as will be known, means to apply 
this only to a young person of some income of his own ; or 
whose friends would add an allowance to his pay, so as to 
place him upon a more equal footing with his brother Officers, 
and superior rank. On a proper behaviour, there is no doubt 
but that he would soon have a Lieutenant's Commission, and 
it is to be considered that at the end of the War, he will be 
entitled to half pay, the same as the line. It is apprehended, 
too, that it might still more peculiarly suit one who may mean 
to ultimately go into the regulars, and would prefer having his 



1 1 2 Old Times. 

first steps in the Militia. The Advertiser, not residing in 
London, a letter at Messrs. Wilson and Wright's, Walker's 
Court, Soho, for A. P., will be duly honoured in the course of 
2 or 3 days, provided it is signed with real name, and address, 
without which it cannot be noticed. 

" Marines. — A young man of respectable connections, and 
of the best morals, is very anxious to be in the service of his 
King, and Country, in these momentous times, and therefore 
ardently intreats the patronage of any Lady or Gentleman, who 
has the interest to procure him, or the power to bestow upon 
him, a Lieutenancy of Marines. He does not mean to offer 
the insult of any pecuniary recompence ; but he will assure a 
greatly more pleasing return to a benevolent mind, that of ever- 
lasting gratitude, and the most unimpeachable conduct. The 
honor of a line to F. G.," &c. J 

"A company in the Guards has lately been sold for the 
enormous sum of 8ooo guineas." — {Times, April 26th, 1796.) 

Commissions in the army were notoriously sold, but 
one would imagine that a line would be drawn at 
Chaplains. 

Advt.— " TO BE DISPOSED OF, A CHAPLAINCY, in 
a new Regiment of Dragoons, and a Quarter-Master's Warrant, 
in a Regiment of Dragoon Guards. Apply to Mr. Hawkes, No. 
17 Piccadilly." — {Times, June 9, 1795.) 

"MILITIA INSURANCE. 

Advt. — " Such persons as wish not to venture the risk of 
finding a substitute, by being drawn for the Old Militia, Supple- 
mentary Militia, and Tower Hamlets, may be secured on the 
following Terms, viz. Old Militia — 7s. 6d. or 10s. per annum; 
Supplementary Militia ;£ 1 is. or £1 ns. 6d ; Ditto, together, 
jQi, 7s. 6d., or £2 per annum; Tower Hamlets jQi, or 
£\ ios., per annum; by Mr. Cox, Junr., No. 36 Holborn." — 
{Times, Feb. 7, 1798.) 

"The trial of Capt. F. Arthur of the Yeoman Artillery, 
commenced on Saturday, at Limerick, and terminated, on 



Old Times. 113 

Monday, the 25th, when he was sentenced by the Court- 
Martial, to be transported for life, and to pay a fine to the King 
°f ' £S 000 "— (Times, July 2, 1798.) 

" Some accounts of our present Volunteer Associations will, 
no doubt, when read a few years hence, excite no small 
degree of surprise. Of this class are the following paragraphs. 

'The Reverend Doctor F gave the word of command.' 

— ' Counsellor G led his detachment to the charge with 

uncommon spirit and vigour.' — 'An Anthem was sung by 
Captain-Lieutenant Sale,' &c." — {Tunes, Sept 5, 1798.) 

"Lewes. — Last week the Volunteers for regular Service 
from the Derby, Westminster, North Gloucester, and Surrey 
regiments of Militia, marched into this town, from their 
respective stations, on their routes to the grand depot, at 
Horsham. The large bounties which these men have received, 
enable them to keep up a scene of drunkenness, and insub- 
ordination, which it is very difficult to restrain. After parade 
here, on Saturday evening, Sir Joseph Mawbey, and other 
Officers, commanding the Surrey Volunteers, were compelled 
to have recourse to their drawn swords, to enforce order, and 
maintain their command, which was for some time powerfully 
resisted, on their ordering a man to the guard-house. And, on 
dismissing the parade, yesterday evening, a similar disturbance 
took place. No swords were then drawn, but the clamour 
demanded the interference of General Hulse, who, in conse- 
quence, ordered out a piquet guard of infantry, and a patrole 
of horse, by which tranquillity was restored, and preserved. 
Others who have passed through thiSj town, in their drunken 
frolics, distinguished themselves by swallowing Bank-notes 
between slices of bread and butter, and lighting their pipes 
with them, to the no small advantage of the Bankers." — 
(Times, July 31, 1799.) 



H4 O^ Times. 



SOCIAL ECONOMY. 

Under this head are placed many matters which could 
scarcely be classified. 

Take, for instance, the series of groups copied from 
a long picture of the " Installation Supper, as given at 
the Pantheon, by the Knights of the Bath, on the 26th 
of May 1788." 

In looking at this series, we must never lose sight of 
the fact, that, here, we are getting a peep at haut ton — 
none of your common folk — and, if the picture be a true 
one, they must have been contented with the roughest 
accommodation. Hard seats, plain tables, with no Plate, 
nor floral decorations, no napkins ; Knives and forks 
brandished in a most reckless, and uncouth manner ; an 
utter disregard for the proprieties of the table, even to 
drinking the gravy out of a plate ; and intoxication, in 
its various phases, passing, seemingly, unchallenged. 
A tankard of beer admitted to such a banquet, and two 
people sharing the same " dish of tea," are all, to us, 
astounding revelations of the social manners of our 
grandfathers. 

From the following we get a curious glimpse of the 
Social economy, of the times — a phase of thinking which 
would scarcely do nowadays : — 

" In a complicated machine, any of the inferior parts getting 
out of order, will soon obstruct the whole : and, conceiving 
such may be the case with public society, we are led to make 




Installation Supper 







S' r f~ Johnston & Lady 



Lord fidf-hurst 
/4a yor fi^/td/n. 



Old Times. 115 

a few observations on some improprieties which occur in the 
present day. 

"The wages given to servants have increased during the 
last 10 years, more than for 30, or perhaps 40, years before : 
and the misfortune is, that dissipation, and want of morals, 
have also much increased, particularly among manufacturing 
labourers, who now have got, in many places, only to work 
three, or four, days in the week, and to be drunk the remaining 
time, leaving their wives, and children, neglected, and in rags. 

" As to household servants, the accommodation offices for 
hiring of them, have had the worst effect. They make them 
indifferent about keeping their places ; lure them on with false 
hopes, and often before a servant gets fixed, they, and the 
pawnbroker, put them under difficulties. 

"Travelling expences, by the profusion in the perquisites 
given to waiters, post boys, &c, have become enormous, and 
their attention is less ; but, if those who give in that way, were 
to consider the injury they do the public, and of how little use 
it is to those who receive it, they would certainly think such 
money so squandered away, would have been better bestowed, 
if applied to some public charity, or left for the poor of the 
parish. 

" Increase of trade, and wealth, having produced an increase 
of luxury, and made the necessaries of life more expensive, it 
is proper that wages should be increased : but yet not beyond 
the bounds of proportion ; for it will be found in those manu- 
facturing occupations, in which labourers get the most money, 
they are the most disorderly, continually combining together 
to leave their work, unless their masters consent to increase 
their wages, and which only proves a temporary compromise, 
till they have an opportunity of making a further demand. On 
the contrary, where less wages are given, we shall find the 
people more happy, and contented, their wives more attended 
to, and their children brought up with more religion, and 
better morals." — {Times, Sept. 5, 1794.) 

"To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. 

"Sir, — Various are the receipts for cheap puddings, and 
many long, and useful, letters have appeared in your very 



n6 Old Times. 

excellent paper, towards alleviating (as much as is in the 
power of every Housekeeper) the scarcity, and dearness, of 
bread : by substituting rice, and potatoes, in the room of pies, 
or flour puddings : but there still exists an evil which I have 
not seen spoken against, and which certainly occasions a very 
great consumption of starch : I mean the general fashion 
which has prevailed for some years, and does still, from the 
highest, to the lowest, of wearing white dresses, which, upon a 
moderate computation, for every individual, must consume at 
least double the soap, and starch, than when coloured callicoes, 
silks, and stuffs, were in fashion : Added to this, that every 
maid servant (who, though she is perhaps not worth a second 
pair of shoes) will wear her muslin handkerchiefs. I think 
it is the duty of every good master, and mistress, to stop, as 
much as possible, the present ridiculous, and extravagant, 
mode of dress in their domestics. View, on a Sunday, a 
tradesman's family coming from church, and you would be 
puzzled to distinguish the porter from his master, or the maid 
from her mistress. Formerly a plaited cap, and a white hand- 
kerchief, served a young woman three, or four, Sundays. Now 
a mistress is required to give up, by agreement, the latter end 
of the week for her maids to prepare their caps, tuckers, gowns, 
&c, for Sunday, and, I am told, there are houses open on 
purpose, where those servants who do not choose their mis- 
tresses shall see them, carry their dresses in a bundle, and put 
them on, meet again in the evening, for the purpose of dis- 
robing : and where, I doubt, many a poor, deluded, creature, 
has been disrobed of her virtue. They certainly call aloud for 
some restraint, both as to their dress, as well as insolent 
manner. Tell a servant, now, in the mildest manner, they 
have not done their work to please you, you are told to pro- 
vide for yourself, and, should you offer to speak again, they 
are gone. Surely no set of people are more capable of render- 
ing our families comfortable, or the reverse, than domestic 
servants, nor any set of people who feel the present dearness 
of provisions so little. I look upon their exorbitant increase 
of wages, as chiefly conducive to their impertinence : for, when 
they had five, or six, pounds a year, a month being out of 
place, was severely felt; but now their wages are doubled, 
they have, in a great measure, lost their dependence : And 




C$/r George Vounj and Lady. 



Old Times. 117 

what is this increase of wages for ? not in order to lay by a 
little, in case of sickness, but to squander in dress. No young 
woman, now, can bear a strong pair of leather shoes, but they 
must wear Spanish leather, and so on in every article of dress. 
No wonder, then, that there should be so many prostitutes, 
and so few good wives. 

" By inserting these hints, as soon as you conveniently can, 
you will much oblige, A Constant Reader" 

— (Times, Dec. 25, 1795.). 

" We trust that the measure, which ' was, last year, so 
laudably attempted by the Brewers, Bakers, and Publicans, for 
the abolishing Christmas-Boxes, will not only be continued by 
them, but will also be followed up by the other trades, who 
have hitherto been compelled, by custom, to continue a 
practice so destructive to the lower orders of people." — 
{Times, Dec. 17, 1794.) 

Advt— " CHRISTMAS BOXES.— The BUTCHERS, resi- 
dent within the Parish of HACKNEY, beg leave respectfully to 
inform their Customers, and the Public, that, on account of 
the excessive high price of Provisions, they find it impossible 
to continue the practice of giving CHRISTMAS BOXES to 
the servants of their customers, without sustaining, on the one 
hand, a deduction from their profits, which the trade will not 
allow, or, on the other hand, increasing their charges : they 
have, therefore, unanimously resolved to discontinue the prac- 
tice, in time to come, and hope that their conduct, on this 
occasion, will not be deemed improper, or disrespectful." — 
(Times, Dec. 9, 1795.) 



The following Advertisements, which are only a few 
out of many, shew how common was the sale of Govern- 
ment appointments : — 

" Place under Government. ^2000 or ^"3000 or more 
will be presented to any Gentleman, who has interest to pro- 
cure for the Advertiser, a Place in any of the Public Office*, of 



n8 Old Times. 

respectability, and an adequate income. No Agent, or 
Broker, will be attended to. Letters to be addressed &c, 
&c." — {Times, March 13, 1793.) 

"Place under Government. To be disposed of, a 
Genteel Place under Government: present Salary ^"ioo a 
year, with the chance of rising, and other advantages : the 
next rise will be a considerable one. — Any Young Gentleman, 
who can command from 500^" to 1000^ will be treated 
with : and by addressing a line to A. Batson's Coffee-house, 
with real name and place of abode, will be informed of 
further particulars. N. B. No Brokers will be attended to." — 
{Times, April 15, 1793.) 



"A PLACE under GOVERNMENT. 

"To be sold, a permanent Place, which can always be 
disposed of at pleasure, the salary ^76 per annum, net, 
payable quarterly, the attendance not more than 20 times 
in the year, and about 2 or 3 hours each time : the duty is 
agreeable, and in the line of a Gentleman, and can at all 
times at a small expence be executed by a Deputy. Address 
&c, &c." — (limes, Feb. 3, 1798.) 

Advt. — " Three hundred Pounds. An adequate Premium 
of ^300 or upwards, will be given to any Lady, or Gentleman, 
who has interest to procure the Advertiser a Place in one of 
the Government Offices. As the parties are of the utmost 
respectability, the greatest honour and secrecy may be 
depended on. Address to &c, &c." 

Advt. — " Fifty Guineas will be given to any Gentleman, or 
Lady, who has interest to procure the Advertiser, a young Man, 
25 years of age, a Situation in any of the Public Offices under 
Government. Address &c, &c." 

Advt. — " A Douceur. Wanted, Information as to Situa- 
tions in Public Offices, or other Appointments under Govern- 
ment, at home, or abroad, which are at present vacant, or like 




Lord Sandwich. D r Bnlland. 



D r Pair. 



Old Times. 1 1 9 

soon to be, or where those who hold such may be willing to resign, 
on account of their advanced time of life, or other circumstances, 
on a Douceur being made them. Any person who can give 
information of this kind will be waited on at any time, or 
place, he may appoint. At meeting, all particular terms, and 
circumstances, can be explained. The Advertiser is a person 
who can give the most satisfactory testimonials of connections, 
and abilities, and he wishes to be understood that the object of 
this Advertisement respects Appointments where the emolu- 
ments derived from the Situations may be from ^500, down 
to ^200 per ann. The most perfect secrecy may be relied 
on—" 

Advt. — " Five Hundred Pounds will be given to any Lady 
or Gentleman, who can procure the Advertiser a Place under 
Government, where the emoluments will be a liberal com- 
pensation for the sum proposed, and but little attendance 
required : or, if constant attendance is necessary, it will be 
expected that the emoluments should be in proportion. The 
person who wishes such a situation, is respectable in his con- 
nections, and the most inviolable secrecy will be observed. 
No broker will be attended to. Either in a Civil depart- 
ment, or otherwise. For reference &c. &c. &c." — (Times, 
/any. 4, 1799.) 

The Penny Post was an institution of those days, 
although its action was limited as to distance. The 
following excerpts will enable us to notice its different 
phases, during the years treated of : — 

" The Postmaster General has lately established a Penny 
Post at Manchester, which promises great convenience to 
the inhabitants of that place, and its vicinity." — (Times, 
April i>], 1793.) 

"The new Penny Post Office is likely to prove such a 
very great accommodation to the public, that the only wonder 
is — it has been so long neglected. Instead of the number of 
deliveries, and the hours of despatch, varying in different parts 



120 Old Times. 

of the town, as at present, there will be six deliveries, each 
day, in all parts of the town ; by which means, a person living 
at Mary-le-bonne, may send letters to, or receive letters from, 
Limehouse, a distance of seven miles, five times a day. 
Persons putting in letters by nine in the morning at the 
distance of ten miles from the chief Penny Post Office, and 
later, at less distant parts, may receive answers from London 
the same afternoon. There will be three deliveries of letters, 
in most parts of the country, within the limits of the Penny 
Post ; and there will be two posts, daily, from all parts within 
the distance of ten miles from Lombard St."— (Times, 
Feb. 28, 1 7 94.) 

"The proposed plan of a new Penny Post is no longer 
talked of: — It is every day more, and more, wanted, as the 
present mode is extremely irregular, and insufficient. Accord- 
ing to the new plan, the Penny Post was to have gone out 
seven times a day." — (Times, May 4, 1794.) 

"The PENNY POST. 

"The late regulations in the Penny Post Office are 
certainly of the most essential service to the public : but the 
conduct of the Letter Carriers requires the most minute 
attention. They will defraud where they think they can do it 
with impunity ; and as an instance of this, we give the following 
fact. From any part of the Metropolis, to the Borough of 
Southwark, and its adjacent parts, is stated to be but One 
penny per Letter. The Carriers, however, uniformly charged 
2d. per Letter. A Complaint of this imposition was made to 
the Comptroller, by a Gentleman, whose house is in the 
Blackfriars Road, and an immediate answer was given 'that 
the Carrier had been severely reprimanded,' and the surcharge 
had been returned. His removal from that walk, gave his 
successor, who, perhaps, did not hear of this reprimand, an 
opportunity to continue the same imposition, and the letters 
to Blackfriars Road, and in' other parts of St. George's Fields, 
were again charged 2d. The Comptroller was again applied 
to, and on the next evening, he wrote a letter to the person 
who sends this for publication, ' that the Carrier was ordered 



Old Times. i?i 

to return the surcharge.' The publication of this circumstance 
is requisite, as no doubt, similar extortions are practised in 
other parts of the suburbs. This is a matter that ought to be 
universally made known, as cent per cent., even on a penny, 
is rather too much for; a man, illegally, to pay." — (Times, 
Oct. 27, 1794.) 

" Franking," as the privilege of free postage was 
called, had already assumed dimensions, so as to have 
become a scandal, which is well exposed in the following 
notices : — 

" Motion respecting Clerks in Office. 

" Mr. Dent said . . . Public notoriety went to accuse the 
offices of great abuse of the privilege of franking . . . that such 
abuses did exist, and to give the proofs of them was the object 
which he proposed to gain by his present motion. He would 
state to the House some of the abuses. Certain bags came to 
the Post Office, marked Ordnance, Navy, Treasury Bags, &c, 
and the letters contained in these bags were furthered without 
more enquiry. These bags, perhaps, contained a great quan- 
tity of letters from the various Clerks : he could produce an 
instance of a very inferior Clerk, who had franked to a great 
amount, by placing his initials on the superscription. He had 
looked attentively over the list of those who had the privilege, 

and he did not find his name among them Among other 

instances, he would mention a Mr. Lackington, a celebrated 
bookseller j he had friends in some one of the Offices, and the 
whole of his Catalogues were franked to different parts of the 
country. It was also notorious, that some persons had written 
to their country correspondents, that if they would deal with 
them, the whole mass of pamphlets published in London 
should be sent them free of postage : this was done by means 
of the Clerks in office. In short, there were persons whose 
salaries amounted to only ^"300, or ^400 per annum, who 
from their situation, made ^1000 or ^"1200. It surely could 
not be the intention of the House to permit such malversation, 
and, therefore, he should move for a Committee to enquire into 
these facts. Before the late regulation, venison has passed as 



122 Old Times. 

nimbly, by the post, as it run when alive in its native park. 
After further conversation, the House divided. — For the 
Question, 53; Against it, 41. — Majority, 12." 

" It would have been extraordinary indeed, if Sir Benjamin 
Hammett had not opposed the Franking Bill : for we are 
informed from very good authority, that Letters franked by, 
and addressed to, him only, are to the amount of ^2400 
sterling per annum" — (Times, March n, 1795.) 

" Debate on Franking. 

" Mr. Hobart brought up the Report of the Committee upon 
the Bill to restrain the abuse of Franking. 

" Mr. Dent said, he was sorry to add, that this privilege had 
been notoriously abused, and was so publicly known, that 
paragraphs had appeared in a newspaper, of a Member having 
received ^300 annually, from a mercantile house, to give them 
the advantage of this privilege. He hoped this fact was false, 
but he feared, however, it would be found too well warranted. 
By this Bill, Members were to receive only fifteen letters, and 
send ten, therefore the abuse, to this extent, could not be 
continued. At the same time, he thought, and should, bye- 
and-bye, more particularly state, in the motion he should 
submit to the House, that, when they were curtailing their own 
privileges, the Clerks in office should not be permitted to con- 
tinue their abuses. 

" Mr. Courtenay said, by the official returns it appeared that 
^30,000 was franked by the various offices, which amounted 
to one third of the whole of what was franked by Members 
of Parliament. Now the privilege was restrained in Members 
of Parliament, it would become more valuable to the Clerks 
in Office, and he should not wonder, if some of them should 
become not sleeping, but writing, partners in mercantile 
houses 

" Mr. Dent observed, abuses in the offices did exist to a very 
great degree. The Commissioners of the Customs received 
large Packets which contained letters to all their acquaintances 
in Town : the abuse did not end here : 20 Custom-House 
Porters were immediately dispatched to 20 different parts of 
the town. 



Old Times. 123 

" Mr. W. Smith said, Public notoriety was sufficient 

grounds to proceed against the Offices. Though all those letters 
were superscribed for His Majesty's service, yet they went upon 
many other purposes. A friend of his had informed him of 
some Vine cuttings, which had been sent to Ireland, franked : 
he also knew of a silk gown franked into the country : this was 
hardly for His Majesty's service. 

"Mr. Rose said, if those abuses, mentioned by the Hon. 
Gentleman, had been privately intimated, they would have had 
immediate attention and some remedy applied. The laws to 
prevent the abuse of franking had been transmitted to the 
several Offices, and by them the first offence was a penalty, and 
the second, a dismissal from Office. 

"The Bill was ordered to be read a third time on Friday." — 
{Times, April 14, 1795.) 

The following are to be the new rates of Postage in 
this country : — 

" For every single Letter by post, for any distance not ex- 
ceeding 15 miles, be charged 3d. Double letters 6d. Triple 
9d. Those of 1 ounce weight, is., and so, in proportion. 

"Above 15 miles, and not exceeding 30, for single Letters 
4d., and so, in the same proportion. 

" Above 30 miles, and not exceeding 60, 5d., and so, in 
proportion. 

"Above 60 miles and not exceeding 100, 6d., and so, in 
proportion. 

"Above 100 miles, and not exceeding 150, 7d., and so, in 
proportion. 

"All above 150 miles, 8d., &c. 

"Upon every single Letter to Scotland, id., the rates of 
Postage remaining the same, on double letters, 2d., &c. 

"That the present rates of Postage between London, and 
Portugal, and between London, and British America, do 
cease. 

" From any part of Great Britain, to Portugal, exclusive of 
Inland Postage, every single letter, is., &c. 

"The same from any part of Great Britain, to British 
America. 



I2 4 Old Times. 

" The Inland Postage upon said Letters according to dis- 
tance."— {Times, Dec. 12, 1796.) 

The following paragraph is interesting, as it fixes the 
date of the Postal Uniforms— the colours of which are 
still adhered to by the Postal authorities, in clothing the 
Mail drivers : — 

"The Post Office Letter Carriers in London are to be 
provided with an uniform of red coats, faced with blue, and to 
wear numbers."— {Times, Feb. 10, 1793.) 

" There is at this time a third of the Mail Guards ill, either 
from the intenseness of the severe weather or from colds they 
have caught in the floods: their exertions were in general 
very great, and meritorious, in saving the Mails."— {Times, 
Feb. 19, 1 795-) 

We are here presented with the infancy of Telegraph- 
ing—which was then a marvel of the age— but which 
we, from our standpoint of Electricity, must fain smile at. 
They were mechanical contrivances placed on hills, or 
other eminences. 

"The Telegraph. — This mode of communication is little 
understood here, although the invention be not a new one. 
The process is getting possession of heights at convenient 
distances, and by fire-works, in different forms, tor different 
letters, spelling the order, or intelligence, from station, to 
station!"— {Times, Sept. 11, 1794.) 

"The new mode of correspondence, by the help of which, 
the surrender of Quesnoy was known at Paris an hour after the 
entry of the French troops into that place, is a communication 
by signals, which are repeated from distance, to distance, by 
machines, stationed four, or five, leagues asunder. This may 
explain the celerity with which communications are made. 

" The telegraph, now brought into use by the French, appears 
to have been an invention of Dr. Hooper's, and published in 
his Rational Recreations, in 1774- The plan of which may 



Old Times. 125 

be seen in his 'Visual Correspondence.'" — {Times, Sept. 15, 
I794-) 

" The invention of the Telegraphe, does not belong alone 
to the French. About ten years ago, Count Possini at Rome, 
invented a mode of getting intelligence from Naples, in the 
course of an hour. The Lottery at Rome, depends upon 
that drawn at Naples. It differs from our Lottery, materially, 
for there are but six prizes, and these are the first six numbers 
drawn, and the remainder are all blanks. The Count, whose 
house is on an eminence near Rome, managed with his con- 
federates, who were placed at certain distances, between 
Naples, and his estate, to have sky rockets let off, by which 
they had previously fixed with each other, to ascertain by such 
signals, any particular number, or numbers, drawn. The plan 
succeeded, as Tickets continued to be sold in Rome, for 
several hours after the drawing commenced at Naples, the 
account of which was always brought by the ordinary courier. 
By this scheme the party got about 100,000 crowns, and the 
plot would never have been discovered, had not the Count 
purchased the whole of the six prizes, which caused suspicion, 
and of course, excited enquiry." — (Times, Sept. 16, 1794.) 

" Astley, who is always employed in the production of 
something new, brings out, this evening, an exhibition of the 
much talked of, and ingenious Machine, called the Tele- 
graphe, at the Lyceum, in the Strand." — (Times, Sept. 19, 
J 794-) 

" The invention of the Telegraphe, is now traced back to 
1655, and particularly mentioned in a little book, then written, 
and published, by the Marquis of Worcester, inventor of 
the Steam Engine. He there gives it the name of Visual 
Correspondence, and calls it his own invention." — (Times, 
Sept. 20, 1794.) 

" Experiments are now making at Woolwich with a new 
species of the Telegraphe, to ascertain at what distance 
intelligence can be conveyed by it during the night. It is 
composed of letters, or figures, nine feet high, cut out in a 



1 26 Old Twus. 

board, which is painted black in front, and strongly illuminated 
behind by patent lamps with reflectors ; it is placed on the 
top of the butt against which the cannon are proved, and 
proper persons are stationed at Purfleet, and other inter- 
mediate places, with telescopes, to determine at what distance 
letters of that size are legible at night, by which means any 
word may be written, by a succession of letters, and intel- 
ligence may be conveyed, with astonishing celerity, during the 
night, by having a series of different signal-houses at proper 
distances between whatever places information is intended to 
be communicated." — {Times, Oct. 7, 1794.) 

" It has been said, that a conversation had actually taken 
place across the Channel, between Donaghadee and Port 
Patrick, by means of a Telegraph. The following are the 
particulars : Two Gentlemen of the county of Longford have 
been, for sometime past, making experiments, in different 
positions, in that county, and they succeeded so well, as to 
induce them to undertake the journey to Donaghadee, where 
the Channel between Britain and Ireland is the narrowest, 
being about 18 Irish miles across. They brought down their 
machinery with them, and, having erected one on each side, 
they conversed with each other, on Monday evening last, the 
weather being tolerably clear. The conversation that passed 
was as follows — The Gentleman on this side said • I see you, 
being white, distinctly.' The other replied ' I see you ; I 
wish your's was white also.' (The machine on this side being 
black.) The Gentleman on this side then asked 'What 
o'clock is it?' and was answered ' Six.' He then said 'I will 
shew lights at nine o'clock, do you attend.' He was answered 
1 1 will attend, but I have only one light.' They then made 
signals of ' good night,' and the communication ended. The 
machine consists of a triangle, with two long sides and a short 
one, suspended in the air vertically ; it turns on a pivot, 
and is capable of being put into eight different positions, very 
distinct from each other. These positions represent eight of 
the common numerical figures, and these figures, according 
to their position, denote certain words and sentences, accord- 
ing to a preconcerted dictionary, or vocabulary, alphabetically, 
as well as numerically, arranged. It is believed this machine 



Old Times. 127 

is on a principle totally different from the French." — {Times, 
Sept. 11, 1795.) 

"A chain of Telegraphs is erected from Shuter's Hill to 
Dover. Gad's Hill, and Bar ham Hill, are the intermediate 
posts." — {Times, Dec. 30, 1795.) 

" Telegraphe. — An improvement on this post-haste mode 
of travelling, has been offered to the Administration, by two 
foreigners, who demand ^40,000 for the discovery, if it 
should be found to answer; if it does not, like quacks of 
another description, they retire with nothing but the shame of 
the attempt These foreigners undertake to convey intelli- 
gence to all parts of the world, by letter as quick as thought. 
Certain globes are to be constructed, that, by the power of 
electricity and attraction, a packet, large as a horse can carry, 
shall be sent to and from Dublin, in about the time requisite 
for dispatching a breakfast ! ! Credat Jadetis ! " — ( Times, Jan. 
12, 1796.) 

In or about 1796, was instituted the semaphore tele- 
graph — which, until the introduction of the Electric Tele- 
graph, was the best system out. 

"The most important services which can be rendered to 
the public by the Telegraph, is in cases similar to that which 
occurred last week, in forwarding the news from Deal to 
London, of the sailing of the Dutch Fleet, within the space of 
five minutes. This prompt conveyance of the intelligence 
enabled the Admiralty Board to take such speedy measures 
for sending a fleet out after the enemy. When the Telegraph 
is established between London and other ports as well as 
Deal, the advantage will be very great indeed." — {Times, 
Mar. 2, 1796.) 

"The English are remarkable for improving upon the 
inventions of their Gallic neighbours. It is well known, that 
while these aerial wanderers were tumbling down like so many 
Phaetons from Heaven, we were driving about securely in 
balloon-coaches, and eating balloon-cakes, and balloon-oysters. 



128 Old Times. 

The same advantage has resulted from the telegraph, which, 
beside christening a coach, and a newspaper, is now transferred 
to the heads of our ladies, and has given us telegraphic hats 
and telegraphic caps. By this invention a female will travel 
to Edinburgh, through the observatory at York, Doncaster, 
Grantham and Huntingdon, from the principal machine in Bond 
Street, in the time of three Operas, or twenty-four Routs." — 
{Times, Oct. 15, 1796.) 

Since the invention of the Coiffure telegraphique it is scarcely 
possible to follow the rapidity of the fashions. The morning 
dress and the evening dress mean literally the dress of the day 
they are worn in. It was observed, with concern, at Drury 
Lane the other evening, that the Lady P's were more than 
half an hour out of fashion." — {Times, Oct. 21, 1796.) 

Among the various tyrannies of fashion, none, per- 
haps was more curious than that of powdering the hair. 
Taxation, and the French mode of " Cropping " killed it, 
but it died hard. — The Tax was treated both jocularly, 
and au grand serieux. 

EPIGRAM. 

" On the Hair Powder Licence Tax, at a time when general 
Expectation looked for a tax on Dogs : — 

" Full many a chance, or dire mishap, 
Oft'times between the lip, and cup, is'; 
The Tax, that should have hung our Dogs, 
Excuses them, and falls on Puppies." 
—{Times, Mar. 11, 1795.) 

" A tax on Dogs would certainly have been unobjectionable, 
as well as expedient, in a two-fold degree ; first in creating a 
revenue, and secondly, in lessening the number of them. At 
the present period particularly, a tax on Dogs would have a 
good effect, as it is a well known fact, that the coarser parts of 
meat are scarcely to be had by the poor, because the rich can 
afford to buy them for their dogs." — {Times, Apr. 11, 1795.) 



Old Times. 129 

" The Tax on Powdered Heads is calculated to produce 
^450,000 per annum, though the Minister has only calcu- 
lated it at .£200,000. Some Gentlemen are said to have made 
an offer to farm it at £400,000." — (Times, Mar. 25, 1795.) 

"Hair Powder Tax." 

"An Annual Certificate to be taken out by every person 
wearing hair-powder, price one-guinea : every sort, or composi- 
tion, of powder worn as an article of dress, to be deemed 
within the meaning of the Act. The Royal Family, and their 
immediate Servants ; Clergymen, whose annual income is 
under ^"ioo; Subaltern, Non-Commissioned Officers, and 
Privates of the Army, Militia, Marines, and Fencible Corps ; 
Officers of the Navy, under the rank of Commander ; Officers, 
and Privates, in Corps of Yeomanry, or Volunteers ; Dissenting 
Preachers in holy orders, or pretended holy orders, whose annual 
income is under £100, are exempted. Persons having more 
than two daughters unmarried, to pay only for two. 

" Persons wearing Powder without a Certificate, to forfeit 
^20. Persons selling, transferring, or using, a Certificate, 
with intent to defraud the revenue, to forfeit £30." — (Times, 
May 7, 1795.) 

"The Powder Tax has already produced three hundred 
thousand pounds to Government. The term is to be extended 
by Act of Parliament, and, according to the most probable 
conjectures, the final amount will be double that sum. 

"The Duke of Devonshire has paid five and thirty guineas 
for his family. The Duchess of Northumberland, a single 
guinea for herself: powder is under interdiction among the 
rest of that family : though not from motives of disaffection. 
Her Grace assigns a more justifiable motive ; namely, a scruple 
of contributing, in any unnecessary way, to the present scar- 
city." — (Times, June 12, 1795.) 

"Hair Powder Tax. The Caricaturists, who generally 
paint so plain, that those who run may read, have whimsically 
described the two orders of beings, who do, and do not, pay. 
The first are aptly enough termed Guinea Pigs — the latter, 
Pigs without a Guinea!" — (Times, July 1, 1795.) 

1 



130 Old Times. 

" The Commander in Chief of Brighton Camp has notified 
to the Officers, that the use of Flour, for the privates, will be 
dispensed with, during the present scarcity of Wheat." — 
{Times, July 15, 1795.) 

" HAIR POWDER. To all those whom it may 

CONCERN. 

"Among the many ingenious, and humane, projects that 
have been devised for lessening the consumption of Flour, and 
soothing the minds of the poor, at this interesting period, it is 
a matter of no small astonishment to me, that that of sacri- 
ficing our hair-powder, has not been more universally adopted. 
To the antiquated virgin, indeed, who still sighs, and hopes, 
and whose silvery locks might prove too sure an index of that 
worldly experience, which, for certain prudential reasons, she 
might wish to conceal, I confess the sacrifice is too great to be 
expected. To the unhappy hen-peck'd bald-pate, whose lively 
wife nauseates, and detests, the careless brown-bob, something 
may be said in his behalf, also : but, to every other character, 
whether the grave judge, or respectable grandmother, the 
buxom widow, or the broad shouldered Irish fortune-hunter, the 
flirting coquette, or her coxcomb colleague, the hardy veteran, 
or flashy militia captain, the pert lawyer, or the young priggish 
parson : and lastly, the smart apprentice, who beflours his head 
to cut a dash at the Dog and Duck, or Bagnigge Wells : all 
these, I say, and every other character that I have omitted to 
name, can surely have no possible excuse for thus insulting the 
feelings of the poor. I repeat the word insulting, for it is the 
just and proper epithet ; for what can we term it but insult, to 
be thus playing with the feelings of these poor wretches, at a 
moment when they are suffering the greatest of all worldly 
miseries — want." — {Times, Aug. 10, 1795.) 

" A morning Paper of yesterday, mentions by name, that a 
Nobleman of the highest rank, in this country, was, last week, 
summoned to the Police-Office, Queen's Square, for wearing 
powder without being licensed. The defence set up that his 
Grace, being a Menial Servant, in the King's Household, was 
exempt from the Tax : which, being admitted, the matter was 



Old Times. 131 

dismissed. — We trust that this information is not authentic, for 
it would be a most pitiful subterfuge to evade the payment 
of a tax, which is generally allowed to be a proper one." 
{Times, Feb. 1, 1797.) — (Query, the Duke of Portland^ 

All articles of luxury, and very many of absolute 
necessity, were taxed to supply the drain of the war — and, 
doubtless, people had to be economical — but the following 
advertisement reduces economy to a science :— 

" ADVANTAGEOUS HAT SUBSCRIPTION. Stamps 
included. 

"Three Hats, value £1, is. each, at^i, 14s. 6d. per Ann., 
delivered as follows. Two on Subscription, the third at the 
end of eight months, when the two first must be returned, and 
the third at the end of the year. Four Hats, value jQi, 4s. 
each, at £2, 6s. per Ann., delivered as follows. Two on sub- 
scribing, and two at the end of six months, when the two first 
must be returned, and the other two at the end of the year. 
The Hats changed as the Fashions vary during subscribing. 
To remove all prejudices, Gentlemen may call at the Manu- 
factory and see the quality. Old Hats taken in part of the 
subscription money. Durant and Pitra, Hat Manufactory, 
middle of Monmouth St." — (Times, Aug. 25, 1796.) 

On Nov. 22, 1798, Pitt brought forward his annual 
statement, relating to public finance — and proposed to 
raise ^7,000,000, by a new tax called a triple assess- 
ment — but, eventually, it turned out that it, with the 
land tax, brought in but about 4-^ Millions. A Briton 
can extract some fun, even out of his misfortunes, so 
they caricatured this heavy tax. In Dec. 1797 appeared 
a picture entitled " More visitors to John Bull ; or the 
Assessed Taxes " — showing four little imps coming to 
John Bull. He naturally asks, " What do you want, you 
little devils ? — ain't I plagued with enough of you 
already ? more pick pocket's work, I suppose ? " But 



132 Old Times. 

the diablotins courteously reply, " Please your honour, 
we are the Assessed Taxes." 

On Dec. 3, 1798, Mr. Pitt again made his annual 
financial statement — and, of course, he wanted more 
money — and the way by which he proposed to raise the 
necessary funds — was by imposing a Tax on Income. 
He proposed that no income under £60 a year should be 
touched — and from that sum, to ^"200 per annum, should 
be on a smaller scale than over ^"200 — past which sum 
— a full tenth of all incomes would be demanded. The 
returns were to be made by the person assessed, subject 
to the inspection of a surveyor, who should lay before 
the commissioners any grounds he might have for sus- 
pecting the return to be false. The commissioners had 
no power to call for account books, or to examine clerks, 
&c. But, if the individual did not clear himself, and 
they thought he had not returned sufficient, they could 
make such assessment as they thought fit. After a long 
debate it was carried by 183 to 17, and made law on 
1 8th Mar. 1799. By the accompanying caricature, 
"A Visitor to John Bull, for the year 1799, or the 
Assessed Taxes taking their leave," it was evidently the 
public impression that the Income Tax would supersede 
the Assessed Taxes. But it was not so, as they were 
still kept on. 

The little demons still behave courteously towards 
John Bull, who looks in undisguised horror at the size 
of the awful fund (the Income Tax) now taking 
possession of him. 

The following paragraph would seem, at first sight, 
rather harsh — but it must be borne in mind that the War 
was a cruel drain on our fiscal resources — and not one 
penny that had been granted by parliament could be bated. 







3 



<0 
X 



Old Times. 133 

"The Commissioners of the Stamp Office having been 
informed that the practice of letting out newspapers for hire, 
was carried on to a very considerable extent, to the great 
injury of the revenue, the Commissioners ordered a prosecution 
to take place, and a newsman was yesterday summoned before 
the Lord Mayor, and convicted in the penalty of £$, as the 
Act directs." — {Times, Oct. 23, 1795.) 

" Lending Newspapers. James Berridge, a Newsman, was, 
on Saturday, brought before Sir William Addington, and R. 
Ford, Esq., charged with letting out Newspapers for hire, from 
house to house. This was a prosecution instituted by the 
Commissioners of the Stamps. A great number of complaints 
were brought forward against him, and he was convicted in 
six penalties of ^5 each. A variety of others were about to 
be exhibited against him, but in consideration of his having a 
large family, the Solicitor declined going into them." — {Times, 
Jan. 2, 1798.) 

" The keepers of several reading-rooms in Fleet Street, and 
Shoe-Lane, were, on Saturday, fined ^"5 for lending news- 
papers for hire." — {Times, Sept. 26, 1798.) 

" Government intends to have one fixed standard for 
Weights, and Measures, over the whole Kingdom ; as the 
greatest frauds, for want of that regulation, have, for ages, 
been practised with impunity. These regulations are much 
needed, and are an excellent subject for taxation. The lower 
orders of the community are grievously imposed upon, for 
want of them, and, doubtless, it will be a popular mode of taxa- 
tion, and can give no offence to any class of people, but those 
dishonestly employed." — {Times, Sept. 15, 1796.) 

" The following curious view of the incredible loss sustained 
by raising weekly loans of money, at the Pawnbrokers, it is 
hoped, will prove an additional incitement to frugality; for 
certain it is, that in many instances, i/6th, and in some cases 
i/5th, and even as high as i/4th, of the annual earnings of the 
more thoughtless, and dissolute part, of the poor, is paid for 
temporary accommodations. For instance, 

The person who borrows 3d. in pawn, pays 6d. a year, 



134 Old Times. 

interest, but, if taken out weekly, (a thing very common, 
particularly during the Lottery), 

It is £d. per week, or 850 per cent, on the sum borrowed. 

If 6d. it is the same „ 425 do. 

If 9d- do. „ 285 do. 

If IS - do. „ 215 do. 

If 2s. do. „ 107I do. 

If 2s. 6d. do. „ 87I do. 

" This explanation should be a warning to those who are so 
improvident, as to pawn their Sunday cloaths, every Monday 
morning, or 52 times a year, a custom which too frequently 
prevails, without reflecting that the Interest paid the Pawn- 
broker would, probably, purchase two or three coats, gowns, 
or silk cloaks, in the course of the year."— {Times, Mar. 20, 
!797-) 

"ON PUBLIC-HOUSES. (Condensed.) 

" In the City of London, and within the Bills of Mortality, 
there are at present 5,204 licensed Public Houses, and it is 
calculated that the Beer, and Spirits, which are consumed in 
these receptacles of idleness, and profligacy, by the labouring 
people, only, is little short of three millions sterling a year. It 
has been lately discovered, that clubs of apprentice boys are 
harboured in Public Houses, for the purpose of supporting their 
brethren who run away from their masters, and of indulging 
themselves early, in scenes of lewdness, and drunkenness, 
which they generally do, by pilfering their masters property, 
and disposing of it at the old iron shops. 
" In a recent publication, the consumption of Ale, and Porter, 
annually, in the metropolis, and its environs, is stated to 
be 1,132,147 barrels, equal to 36,625,145 gallons, making 

158,400,580 pots at 3 |d ^2,311,4661510 

" And, by another calculation, the 
average consumption of Gin, and 
Compounds, in Public Houses, pre- 
vious to the stoppage of the distillery, 
was about 3,000,000 of Gallons . . 975,000 o o 

.£3,286,466 15 10 




X 

vs. 






■3 

J5 



Old Times. 135 

" If a conclusion may be drawn from the apparent greater 
degree of sobriety, which is manifested, at present, by the 
labouring people, and evinced by the number of quarrels, and 
assaults, being very considerably diminished, and the pressure, 
with respect to the means of living, apparently less than in the 
spring of 1795, notwithstanding no charities have been dis- 
tributed, and bread is considerably higher, it would seem 
reasonable to attribute this favourable change, to the high 
price of Gin, which, being in a great measure inaccessible, the 
lower ranks have it now in their power, to apply the money, 
formerly spent in this way, to the purchase of provisions, 
perhaps to the extent of some hundred thousands of Pounds 
a year, in the metropolis, alone !" — {Times, Oct. 4. 1797.) 

FOOD. 

The years 1795-6 were years of great scarcity, and 
the graphic daily accounts of the want of food, and of 
the various substitutes for bread — the abstinence of all 
classes, from the King, to the labourer, bring very 
vividly to our minds, a state of things, which has never 
since obtained in England — 

"In consequence of the scarcity of Wheat, arising partly 
from such quantities of it being used for hair-powder, several 
regiments have, very patriotically, discontinued the use of hair- 
powder, which, in these instances, was generally nothing but 
flour." — {Times, Feb. 10, 1795.) 

"The Parliamentary Board of Agriculture, in consideration 
of the probable scarcity of wheat, have agreed to propose a 
premium of One Thousand Pounds, to the person who will 
grow the largest breadth of Potatoes, on lands never applied to 
the culture of that plant before : — they have liberally excluded 
the Members of their own Board from becoming candidates 
for this valuable prize." — {Times, Feb. 14, 1795.) 

" The general failure of Wheat, throughout Europe, last 
year, makes it proper to promote the culture of an increased 



136 Old Times. 

quantity of Potatoes, and, as one means of doing it, it is 
recommended to Noblemen and Gentlemen, -who have large 
Parks, to break up a part of them to be planted with Potatoes, 
those grounds generally lying dry, will be very proper for the 
purpose, and fit for immediate planting with that root. It is 
hoped that so benevolent, and patriotic, an object, will be a 
sufficient incitement, without a consideration of profit at- 
tached." — (Times, March 20, 1795.) 

" It is hinted by a benevolent mind, who has, on account of 
meat being so dear, left off soup in his family, at present, that 
the making of soup destroys a great deal of meat, and it is 
recommended that the rich leave off making soups, as the 
meat is generally wasted, it will relieve a great many poor 
families in these dear times." — (Times, April 27, 1775.) 

" Friday, a Court of Common-Council was held at Guildhall : 
when the Lord Mayor stated to the Court, the hardships the 
poor feel on account of the high price of provisions, on which, 
Mr. Syms moved, that a Committee of all the Aldermen, and 
one Commoner, out of each Ward, be appointed, to consider 
the best method to be adopted for reducing the price, which, 
after a few observations, was agreed to. 

" Mr. Dixon moved, that, for one year, neither the Corpora- 
tion, nor any Committee, be allowed public dinners. It was 
seconded by Mr. Kemble, and supported by three, or four, 
other Members : but some treated the motion as not seriously 
meant. Mr. Depu4y Birch moved an amendment, by adding, 
that the savings by such means, be paid to the Committee now 
appointed, to be by them appropriated for reducing the price 
of provisions — on which a previous questioned was moved, 
and the question being put, there appeared for it 26 ; against 
it 39; Majority against, 13." — (Times, May 11, 1795.) 

" Provisions continue to advance in price. Mutton, in the 
last week, rose 4d. per stone of 81bs., which now costs the 
enormous sum of 5s. in Smithfield Market, sinking the offal ; 
ox beef is 4s. 4d., lamb 6s., veal 5s. 8d. 

" If a bounty was to be given on mackarel brought to 
market, it would, in a great measure, tend to lower the price of 




«0 

I 



Old Times. 137 

butchers meat, which a ruinous plan of forestalling, and unfair 
buying and selling, has raised to an alarming price. 

" A report from the committee appointed at the last Court 
of Common Council, to consider of the best means of reducing 
the present high price of provisions, was read, giving it as their 
opinion, that encouraging the bringing up fish to Billingsgate, 
would, in a great measure, reduce the price of meat, with which 
report the Court agreed, and ^500 was granted for that 
purpose." — {Times, May 18, 1795.) 

Advt— "GUILDHALL, London, May 22, 1795. 

"The Committee, appointed by the Court of Common 
Council, to use the best Means to increase the Quantity of 
Fish brought to the London Market, to reduce the price of 
Provisions, do hereby give notice, that they have resolved to 
give a Bounty of Two Pounds for every 1000 Mackarel, sold 
at Billingsgate, at the rate of 20s. per hundred of six score, 
with a sufficient proof of their freshness : Four Pounds for 
every 2000 : Six Pounds for every 3000 : Eight Pounds for 
every 4000, and Ten Pounds for every 5000 Mackarel, sold, 
as aforesaid. Also, they have resolved to give a Bounty of 
Five Pounds per Ton, or Five Shillings for every Hundred 
weight of Cod, and Haddock, sold at Billingsgate at the rate 
of 2d. per lb., with a sufficient proof of their freshness. The 
said Bounties to commence on Monday the 1st June next, 
and be paid by applying at the Chamberlain's Office, on pro- 
ducing a Certificate, of the number, goodness, and prices, of 
the said Fish. Rix." 

—{Times, May 25, 1795.) 

"Among the numerous causes which may be assigned for 
the present high prices of provisions, especially of poultry, the 
uniting of many small farms into one great one, is not the 
least It is a well known fact, that, where three farms have 
been leased, or let, to one tenant, which three farms, ante- 
cedently, had each a separate tenant, no more poultry is pro- 
duced by the union, than each separately reared, when divided, 
so that two-thirds are, of course, lost to the public. This 
mode of throwing many small farms into one large farm, by 



138 Old Times. 

having one, instead of a number of tenants, however it may 
profit the landlord, is of very great injury to the public, inas- 
much as it gives a kind of Aristocracy to the farmers, that 
enables them, in a great measure, to set what price they please 
upon provisions, destroying that competition, which is always 
the consequence, where the venders are numerous. Thus it 
is that a great part of Oxfordshire has been bought up by a 
noble Duke, who, by monopolizing so much land, and destroy- 
ing a number of small farms, has done a very essential injury 
to the public." — {Times, June 22, 1795.) 

"We are sorry to learn that Wheat rose yesterday nine 
shillings per quarter. It is, however, with great satisfaction, 
we announce, that several ships, laden with corn, are arrived 
in the Downs from Dantzic, and part of their produce 
is expected to arrive in time for to-morrow's market." — 
{Times, July 7, 1795.) 

"The Privy Council, whose constant attention has been 
directed, for many months past, to provide the kingdom with 
a regular supply of corn, propose to recommend to the country 
at large, the use of Household Bread. It is further to be 
recommended, that families should not have puddings, or 
pies, nor any such like articles made of flour. 

" The Magistrates of the General Quarter Sessions for 
Middlesex, seem to be acting upon this principle in the 
resolution passed at their last Court-day, which we trust will 
be followed by every other public body in the kingdom. The 
disuse of pastry seems to be a very important consideration. 

" The Directors of the East India Co. have set a laudable 
example of attention to the distresses of the times, in abridg- 
ing the customary expense of their dinners, on Court-days." — 
{Times, July 10, 1795) 

Advt. — " At a General Quarter Session of the Peace, for the 
County of Middlesex, the Magistrates assembled, taking into 
consideration the present High Prices of Provisions, with the 
consequent inconveniences resulting therefrom, and, feeling 
the propriety of a general retrenchment in the manner of 
furnishing the Table, at this particular time, have come to 



Old Times. 139 

the following Resolution, viz., That during the remainder of 
the present Session, and during the next Session, in Sep- 
tember, no Puddings, or Pies, nor any the like articles made 
of Flour, be served to their table, nor any other provisions, 
whatsoever, than fish, beef, mutton, or veal, with vegetables, 
and household bread. 

" By the Court. Selby." 

—{Times, July 9, 1795.) 

"Yesterday, the Directors of the Bank of England 
sent ^500 to the Lord Mayor, requesting he would apply 
that sum towards the relief of the industrious poor, in the 
article of bread. The Sun Fire Office sent ^100, to the 
same worthy Magistrate, for the like purpose. The different 
Wards in the City have subscribed, very liberally, towards the 
relief of the poor in their present distress. Public subscrip- 
tions are about to be opened for the same benevolent pur- 
pose. Pastry, and puddings, have been abolished in a number 
of private houses. The Directors of the Bank yesterday 
came to a resolution to have no more public dinners, while 
the price of provisions continued so high. This laudable 
resolution will, we trust, be followed by all the corporate 
bodies in the kingdom." — {Times, July n, 1795.) 

" The Drapers Company voted the 200 guineas, for re- 
ducing the price of Bread, after the Court had been on a 
Survey, and, (to use a technical term) returned to dine upon a 
view. The following Epigram was put under the Master's 
plate : — 

" In times so hard, how happy 'twere 
If thousands, like to you, 
Could glut their craving appetites 
By dining on — a view. 

But from your views such works of love 
Such general good accrues, 
That happier 'twere if each day brought 
New dinners and new views." 

— (Times, July n, 1795.) 



140 Old Times. 



Advt— " MIDDLESEX. 

" At the General Quarter Session of the Peace of our Lord 

the King, holden in and for the County of Middlesex 

a Letter from his Grace the Duke of Portland, one of her 
Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, was read, inclosing 
a copy of the following engagement, entered into by several 
of the Lords of his Majesty's most Hon. Privy Council, in the 
following words : 

" In consideration of the present high Price of Wheat, and, 
in order to diminish the Consumption thereof, in our respec- 
tive Families, so as to leave a larger Supply of this necessary 
Article of Food, for the People in general, until the Corn of 
the ensuing Harvest shall come into Consumption, and relieve 
them of their present difficulties : We, whose Names are 
hereto subscribed, being desirous of introducing into common 
use a wholesome Bread, at a lower price than must be paid for 
the sort of Bread now ordinarily used, do engage that we will 
not, ourselves, consume, nor surfer to be consumed, in any of 
our Families, until the First Day of October next, at any 
place where the sort of Bread undermentioned can be pro- 
cured, any sort of Wheaten Bread finer than that which, in an 
Act of Parliament passed in the 13th year of his present 
Majesty's Reign, is called by the name of Standard Wheaten 
Bread : which is directed by the said Act to be made of the 
Flour of Wheat, which Flour, without any Mixture, or Division, 
shall be the whole Produce of the Grain, the Bran or Hull 
thereof only excepted, and which shall weigh three-fourths 
parts of the weight of the Wheat whereof it shall be made. We 
further engage to diminish, as much as possible, the use of Flour 
in other articles of Food consumed in our respective Families. 
And we earnestly recommend to all our Fellow Subjects, to 
adopt these Measures, and strictly adhere to the same. 

Loughborough. Spencer. Grenville. Kenyon. 

Manstield. Hawkesbury. Amherst. Sandwich. 

Chatham. W. Pitt. Winchelsea. Mornington. 

Portland. Leicester. Stafford. Carlisle. 

Chesterfield. Up. Ossory. R. P. Arden. 

J. Eyre. W. Windham. Dudley Ryder. 

A. Macdonald. Bathurst. C. Townshend. C. F. Gteville. 



Old Times. 141 

" Resolved, that this Court, deeply impressed by the wisdom 
of this measure, adopt the Regulations stated in the above 
Engagement, and resolve strictly to adhere to them, earnestly 
recommending them to the serious consideration, and prac- 
tice, of all Masters of Families, and other Inhabitants of this 
County, &c, &c. Selby." 

—{Times, July 14, 1795.) 

The want of bread is often more imaginary, than real. 
There are many excellent substitutes for this article, which 
would in themselves be preferred by many people, if it were a 
matter of choice, only, between themselves. Unfortunately, 
the call for bread will always be in proportion to the scarcity 
of it. from the natural disposition of some to make grievances, 
and complaints, and of others to provoke tumult, and riot. 

" To make good bread. Take a pottle of fine oatmeal, 
and lay it in water, to steep, all night : next morning, it will 
appear (if too much water is not put to it) like hasty pudding. 
This break into several parts of a peck and a half of barley- 
meal, to which add warm water, and yeast, and knead it into 
dough, as all wheat meal is commonly done : then mould it 
into loaves, and bake them. Thus, a barley loaf may be made 
hollow, white, and sweet, so as scarcely to be known from 
coarse wheaten bread. When skimmed milk can be had, it 
will make the bread better still." — {Times, July 15, 1795.) 

"COMMON COUNCIL. 

" Yesterday, a Court of Common Council was held at 
Guildhall, at which the Lord Mayor, 6 Aldermen, and 
about 150 Commoners, were present. 

"The Lord Mayor informed the Court, that he had not yet 
received any answer to the application made by desire of that 
Court to his Majesty's Ministers, requesting them to prohibit 
the use of Hair Powder, and Flour, in the Army. It was, 
however, generally understood in the Court, that Government 
was acting in compliance with the wishes of the Court. 

" The Court then proceeded to take into consideration 
the Resolutions of his Majesty's Hon. Privy Council, recom- 



142 Old Times. 

mending the use of standard wheaten Bread (see the Adver- 
tisement in the Times of Tuesday last 14th inst.). The Court 
resolved to adopt, and to exert themselves to give force to, the 
Resolution of the Privy Council, and earnestly recommend the 
same to their fellow citizens. A Deputation was appointed to 
wait on the Privy Council, relative to some regulations not 
clearly understood, respecting the Millers forwarding the sort 
of Flour necessary for the purpose to market It was also the 
opinion of the Court, that the said Deputation should recom- 
mend to the Privy Council, to take into consideration the 
propriety of an indemnity to the Bakers, in fixing a price to 
the said Household Bread. 

" Mr. Kemble then made his promised motion for the 
Court to resolve ' That no dinners be allowed, at the expence 
of the City, to the different Committees for managing the con- 
cerns of the Corporation, for the period of one year.' It was 
seconded by Mr. Herring, when a debate took place, which 
lasted more than two hours. The debate was at length termi- 
nated by Mr. Box proposing to adopt the words 'till the 1st of 
October next,' the time fixed on, in the Regulations of the 
Privy Council, as at that period it was to be hoped the present 
scarcity would be removed. And, if it was not, the Court could 
extend the prohibition. The motion, so amended, was then 
put, and carried, by a Majority of seventeen only ! ! " — 
{Times, July 16, 1795.) 

"We offer the following hints for the government of 
individuals in affluent circumstances, with a view of reducing 
the high price of provisions : — 

" To have fish at table as often as possible. 

" To sit down with a determined resolution to eat only of 
one kind of butcher's meat; and, where circumstances will 
admit, to have only one dish of meat at table. 

" To forbid the use of pastry in your own house, and to 
decline the use of it at any other table. 

" To be particularly economical in the use of bread, and to 
cut, yourself, what you use at your own table ; making your 
servants sensible that you give such directions from a regard to 
the comforts of the poor, and not from any penurious views. It 
appears, indeed, to be of the utmost consequence to make ser- 



Old Times. 143 

vants in great, and even small families, sensible how much they 
may, under present circumstances, contribute to the relief, and 
comfort, of the poor, which every British heart must wish to do. 
"Bakers ought to be prevented from selling bread of the 
same day's baking, as, on a fair calculation, four stale loaves 
are equal to five new ones." — {Times, July 16, 1795.) 

" At a period when every species of grain has become both 
scarce, and dear, it is the duty of every individual to inform the 
public of any possible diminution in the consumption. It is 
with this view that we feel much satisfaction in announcing to 
all who keep horses for draught, that a saving of twenty-five 
per cent, in Oats, has been introduced into the stables of 
Thrale's Brewhouse, in the Borough, since the month of 
September last, which we are happy to learn has been adopted 
by several other principal manufacturers. Their plan is 
simply to roll all their oats between two iron cilinders, which 
they have attached to their steam engine. By this process, an 
increase is found of two bushels a sack. After being well 
rolled (which is usually done twice, or thrice, a week) the Oats 
are mixed with chaff of the best quality, and divided in the 
usual manner. This mode of rolling, is deemed equal to 
mastication. It is found, from experience, equally beneficial 
to old horses, whose teeth may be impaired, as well as young 
horses, who often return home very hungry, and are apt to 
swallow their oats without chewing them, by which means 
they are frequently observed to pass through them undi- 
gested." — (Times, July 16, 1795.) 

" It is now almost the prevailing custom in every family of 
distinction, to have the loaf brought on the table, and each 
person to help himself. This example must have a consider- 
able influence in reducing the consumption of this, as well as 
other, necessaries of life. 

" The custom of wearing Hair-Powder is growing into very 
general disuse : and we shall not be surprised if we soon see it 
almost altogether abolished, during the present scarcity of grain. 

"The recommendation of the Privy Council, to adopt the 
use of Household Bread, will be of little avail, unless their 
request is converted into an order, that no bread, above that 



*44 Old Times. 

standard, shall hereafter be baked : and every idea of ex- 
pediency, and common policy, demands that some measure 
of this tendency should immediately be enforced." — {Times, 
July 17, 1795.) 

"There is no economy more laudable at this moment, than 
that of lessening the consumption of bread, in private families. 
This has been practised with such success, by Mr. Parish, 
on Ludgate Hill, that he now consumes but four Brown loaves 
per week, in lieu of twelve, or thirteen, White ones, as for- 
merly. This is a most notable example, and, we trust, will be 
imitated by many, though perhaps with somewhat less rigour. 
Mr. P.'s substitute for bread, are, principally, potatoes, and 
rice."— {Times, July 18, 1795.) 

"In Sussex, the Gentry have adopted the most rational 
mode of diminishing the price of Corn. Instead of supplying 
the poor with bread, at a low price, which can only tend to 
increase the consumption, they give pickled pork, &c, to an 
equal amount, which, with the use of cabbage, beans, &c, 
may banish, without much suffering, the loaf, at least, from 
their dinner tables."— (Times, July 20, 1795.) 

" After the humane example of the City, in leaving off their 
annual feasts, we are happy to find it is intended to be uni- 
versally adopted by the surrounding parishes, and opulent 
families ; particularly by some of the principal inhabitants of 
Whitechapel, who, at one of their Greenwich meetings, on 
Monday, wisely determined to eat venison, and white-bait, 
no longer than the season will produce them."— (Times, 
July 22, 1795.) 

Some of the following set of moral rules might be 
followed with advantage at the present day : — 

"THE WAY TO PEACE AND PLENTY. 
Rules for the rich. 

1. Abolish gravy soups, and second courses. 

2. Buy no starch when wheat is dear. 

3. Destroy all useless dogs. 



Old Times. 145 

4. Give no dog, or other animal, the smallest bit of bread 
or meat. 

5. Save all your skim-milk carefully, and give it all to the 
poor, or sell it at a cheap rate. 

6. Make broth, rice pudding, &c, for the poor, and teach 
them to make such things. 

7. Go to church yourselves, and take care your servants go 
constantly. 

8. Look into the management of your own families, and 
visit your poor neighbours. 

9. Prefer those poor who keep steadily to their work, and 
go constantly to church, and give nothing to those who are idle, 
and riotous, or keep useless dogs. 

10. Buy no weighing meat, or gravy beef: if the rich would 
buy only the prime pieces, the poor could get the others 
cheap. 

Rules for the Poor. 

1. Keep steadily to your work, and never change masters, 
if you can help it. 

2. Go to no gin-shop, or alehouse : but lay out all your 
earnings in food, and cloaths, for yourself, and your family : 
and try to lay up a little for rent, and rainy days. 

3. Avoid bad company. 

4. Keep no dogs : for they rob your children, and your 
neighbours. 

5. Go constantly to church, and carry your wives, and 
children, with you, and God will bless you. 

6. Be civil to your superiors, and they will be kind to you. 

7. Learn to make broth, milk pottage, rice-pudding, &c. 
One pound of meat, in broth, will go further than two pounds 
boiled, or roasted. 

8. Be quiet, and contented, and never steal, or swear, or 
you will never thrive." — (Times, July 23, 1795.) 

"Yesterday, the Stationer? Company had their annual 
dinner, at Stationers' Hall. Having determined, in consequence 
of the great scarcity of flour, to abolish the use of pies, they 



146 Old Times. 

contented themselves with several haunches of venison, and a 
number of venison pasties, which consumed flour enough for 
50 fruit pies. And in order to adopt the above resolution of 
no pies, the Court of Assistants had, previously, a snug dinner, 
consisting of all the delicacies of the season. Of public dinners, 
those of the Stationers Company rival every other. We have 
not yet heard of the Company having contributed anything to 
the relief of the poor." — {Times, Aug. 14, 1795.) 

" One among the serious consequences of the dearness of 
provisions, is, that the price of board in schools, is considerably 
raised. There are few schools of repute, that have not raised 
their terms, at least five guineas a year."— (Times, Oct. 8, 
I795-) 

" The price of butter, in all parts of the country, has been, 
lately, most shamefully advanced, without any cause to justify 
the measure. The season has, hitherto, been favourable to 
grazing, and the war cannot extend its influence to our dairies. 
On the same principle, the late advance in the price of Milk, 
in the Metropolis, should be enquired into. London is supplied 
with Milk by about 30 cow-keepers, who may at pleasure either 
deprive the city of this necessary article, or extort what price 
they may think proper for it. Milk should be made subject to 
the regulations respecting bread, beer, &c, as, indeed, should 
every similar commodity." — (Times, Feb. 15, 1796.) 

"In consequence of the public refraining to buy fresh 
butter, the price fell from i4^d. to 9d. and lod. per pound, in 
Sheffield Market, last week. And so it would be in London, 
if every family would consent to buy Cambridge butter, for a 
few days, or to allow only half the quantity of fresh to be taken 
in, which is usually consumed" — (Times, Alar. 2, 1796.) 

" The Beef Trade, though it declined a market day, or two, 
in the heat of the weather, is nearly up again to its enormous 
Spring prices : a good bullock being now worth 4s. 6d. per 
stone. Veal, Mutton, and Lamb, are getting down, but Pork 



Old Times. 147 

still fetches 10s. a score. Lean stock, of every kind, is exces- 
sively dear, and difficult to be obtained, on any terms, that of 
the sheep kind, in particular." — {Times, Sep. 5, 1796.) 

"The great importance of the Distilleries, in the article of 
fatted hogs, may be judged of, in some degree, by the number 
turned out of the distilleries, in Surrey alone, which are 
estimated at 11,700 a year, valued at ^46,215, besides the 
great number fed in the starch yards. It is said, that all the 
distilleries in the Kingdom, when in full work, send to market, 
weekly, near 30,000 hogs : during the last year, they were at a 
total stand, and the price of bacon has been enormous." — 
{Times, Oct. 26, 1796.) 

Some of the great ones of the land set a good example 
of economy to their poorer brethren — the King among 
the number. 

"The Margrave of Anspach sets a princely example of 
economy to his betters : his table is furnished by contract, 
and the daily expence exceeds not half-a-guinea per head. 
Of course, the purveyor takes the needful care of broken 
victuals : whilst Sir Harry, and the Duke's servant, fare 
equally alike in that larder, where Miss Kitty or Mrs. Cook 
have nought to give, but bread and cheese, and kisses." — 
( Times, June 22, 1795.) 

" His Majesty has given orders for the bread used in his 
household, to be made of meal, and rye, mixed. No other 
sort is permitted to be baked, and the Royal Family eat bread 
of the same quality as their servants do. It is extremely 
sweet, and palatable. 

" One half flour, and half potatoes, also make a very excel- 
lent bread." — {Times, July 22, 1795.) 

"The writer of this paragraph has seen the bread that is 
eaten at His Majesty's table. It consists of two sorts only, 
the one composed of wheaten flour, and rye, mixed ; the other 



148 Old Times. 

is half wheaten flour, half potatoe flour. If ever example 
deserved imitation, it is surely this."— {Times, July 30, 
I 795) 

The Court of Aldermen had the power of apportion- 
ing the price of bread according to the price of wheat 

thus affording the baker a fair profit, and protecting the 
consumer. 

"Yesterday, a Court of Aldermen was held at Guildhall, 
which came to a resolution to raise the price of bread to a 
Shilling the Quartern Loaf."— {Times, July 8, 1795.) 

"The price of Flour having risen 4s. per sack, the Court of 
Common Council ordered the assize of bread ttfone shilling 
and a halfpenny per quartern loaf."— {Times, July 23, 1795.) 

"Tuesday, a Court of Aldermen was held at Guildhall. 
The Court ordered the price of bread to remain at is. 3d. the 
quartern loaf. 

" The Court having considered the petition of the Retail 
Dealers in Salt, for an advance, were pleased to order the 
price of salt to be fixed as follows, viz., 8s. per bushel, 4s. per 
half ditto, 2s. per peck, is. per half ditto, 6d. per quarter-ditto, 
3d. per half-quarter peck, 2d. per pound, id. per half ditto." 
— {Times, March 10, 1796.) 

" Assize of Bread. 

"The regulation of the Assize of Bread being generally 
misunderstood, the following tables, extracted from the Act of 
Parliament of the 31st Geo. II. will at once shew, by what 
authority, the Magistrates regulate the Price of Bread, with 
the allowance to Bakers of is. 6d. per bushel for wheat, and 
1 os. per sack for flour : a reference to which tables, will enable 
every person to ascertain the price of the quartern, and peck, 
loaf, as well as the Magistrates themselves : and will prove that 
the letter of the law, and not the will of the Magistrates, regulates 



Old Times. 



149 



that necessary article. At the same time, the public will be 
convinced, that the average price of flour is more in favour of 
the consumer, than that of wheat. For example — the average 
price of wheat, this day, is 9s. per bushel. The allowance to 
the baker, is is. 6d. The quartern loaf would then be is. — 
whereas, the average price of flour being 63s. and 4&, the 
Magistrates are enabled to make the Assize of Bread nd. 
instead of is. 



WHEAT. 



When the 

Average Price 

of Wheat is 

per Bushel. 


Allowance to 
the Baker. 


Total Price, 
including the 
Allowance. 


Quartern 
Loaf. 


Peck Loaf. 


7/ 

7/3 

7/6 

7/9 

8/ 

8/3 

8/6 

9/ 


1/6 

»» 
J) 


8/6 

8/9 

9/ 

9/3 

9/6 

9/9 

10/ 

10/6 


/9i 

/IO 

/10J 

/I04 

/10* 

/» 
/ni 

1/ 


3/3 

3/4 
3/5 
3/6 
3/7i 

3/8 

3/i° 

4/ 



FLOUR. 



When the 










Average Price 
of Flour is 


Allowance to 
the Baker. 


Total Price. 


Quartern 
Loaf. 


Peck Loaf. 


per Sack. 










50/ 


10/ per sack 


60/ 


/9 


3/ 


51/8 


)> 


6l/8 


l9i 


3/i 


53/4 


)> 


63/4 


M 


3/2 


55/ 


>i 


65/ 


/9l 


3/3 


56/8 


j» 


66/8 


/IO 


3/4 


58/4 


>) 


68/4 


/io| 


3/5 


60/ 


)> 


70/ 


/io£ 


3/6 


61/8 


11 


71/8 


/io| 


3/7 



— {Times, July 1, 1796.) 



The Aldermen also had the power of visiting the 
bakers' shops within their Wards, of fining dishonest 



150 Old Times. 

bakers, and distributing their bread, gratis, to the poor, — 
a summary, and most effectual, way of dealing with the 
rogues. 

" Wednesday, a cheap Baker in Bishopsgate-Ward was fined, 
by the Lord Mayor, 5s. per ounce, on 16 ounces short weight, 
in seven quartern, and nine penny loaves, taken by the inquest 
of that Ward from out of his shop." — {Times, March 29, 

1 793-) 

" Saturday Mr. Justice Russell, and the Peace Officers of 
Greenwich, went to all the bakers, and weighed their bread, 
to find out if the poor, and other inhabitants, had their due 
weight : when many loaves, found deficient in weight, were 
immediately given away at the doors of the bakers to those 
poor persons who were not under any relief from the parish." 
—{Times, Jan. 12, 1795.) 

" Monday, in consequence of an information, Mr. Justice 
Addington, attended by several officers, went to a Baker's 
shop, in Holborn, where they found 70 loaves, short of the 
standard weight, 181 ounces. The Magistrate fixed the penalty 
of 5s. per ounce, which amounted to ^45, 5s., but which 
was mitigated to ,£40. The Magistrate, and officers, then 
went to a Baker's in Little Turnstile, and found 54 loaves 
short of the standard, 142 ounces, amounting at 5s. an ounce 
to ^36, but which was mitigated to ,£30. The loaves were dis- 
tributed to the poor in the neighbourhood of Covent Garden." 
—{Times, July 8, 1795) 

" A Baker was convicted, yesterday, at the Public Office, 
Whitechapel, of making Bread, to the amount of 307 ounces, 
deficient in weight, and fined in the penalty of ^64, 7s." — 
{Times, Aug. 27, 1796.) 

"A Baker was, yesterday, convicted in the penalty of 
£106, 5s. on 420 ounces of bread, deficient in weight." — 
{Times, Aug. 30, [796.) 



Old Times. 151 

"On Thursday a great deal of bread was brought before 
Alderman Cadell, by the Inquest of one of the City Wards, 
being under the regular standard of weight. The Alderman 
ordered the loaves to be all weighed before him, and desired 
the Bakers who were present, to attend to the weights. 

" The Bakers expressed their sorrow for it, and said it was an 
accident occasioned by the carelessness of their Journeymen, 
in suffering it to be an hour too long in the oven. They not 
bringing the men forward, to substantiate the defence, the 
Alderman told them he should fine them the full penalty, of 
five shillings an ounce, for all deficient ; which came to above 
twenty pounds, besides the forfeiture of the bread. Mr. Kirby, 
the Keeper of Newgate, being present, solicited part of it, for 
his prisoners. Some of the Inquest likewise solicited the 
bread, for the poor of their ward : but the Alderman told them 
that half of the penalty came to them, which would compensate 
for the bread." — [Times, Nov. 30, 1799.) 

" Forestalling " and " Regrating " were heinous sins. 
— They consisted in buying any thing on its way to 
market, before it had been exposed for public sale — and 
in purchasing at any market at one price, and selling it 
again at a higher. 

" In consequence of the serious enquiry making into the 
infamous practices of the salesmen, in Smithfield market, and 
the conviction of a leading man among them, for regrating, 
mutton, and lamb, fell i|d. per pound, in Friday, and 
yesterday's, market. If the Magistrates would but exert them- 
selves, to put in force the laws against monopolizers, and 
forestalled, provisions would soon be at a moderate price, as 
we are convinced there is no real scarcity : and are of opinion 
that the farmers and graziers, who are now holding back their 
corn, and cattle, will experience the fate of those, who, in the 
hard weather, refused to sell their potatoes under 2^d. per lb., 
and now cannot get |d. per lb., but have the well deserved 
prospect of being obliged to give them to the hogs, for want of 
a consumption." — {Times, May 26, 1795.) 



152 Old Times. 

" HIGH PRICE OF MEAT. This alarming circumstance 
is not owing to any real scarcity of oxen, sheep, or hogs, but, 
partly, to a combination among the carcass-butchers in the 
wholesale markets, and the salesmen in Smithfield, who fix 
the prices, and who regulate what quantity of cattle shall come 
to town : and, partly, to a very shameful practice among the 
retail butchers, especially where a contract is made to supply 
a family at so much per pound for the year. When the 
butcher has made his contract at 5d., 5§d., or 6d., he can 
make a very great profit, although, as is now the case, he can 
purchase a carcass at 7^d. in the wholesale markets : and the 
mode by which he does this, is in defrauding his customers of 
the due weight, to which the person, who attends to see the 
meat weighed, too often connives at, for a Christmas present, 
or an Easter gift. The weight, no doubt is in the scale, at 
the time of weighing : but when the meat is put by, in order 
to be sent home, a considerable part is purloined : and it is 
a well known fact, that, in these large lots, the same leg of 
beef (?) has been weighed to, perhaps, ten or twelve families, in 
the same day, and not sent to any of them. The leg is con- 
sidered as the most convenient for this theft, because it is so 
large, and is, when weighed with the lot, hung on the end of 
the beam of the scales, from whence it is taken down, and 
thrown, not where it ought, with the meat, but to another part 
of the shop. If this was not the case, how is it possible that 
a butcher can make a livelihood, when he buys 2d. per pound 
dearer than he sells ? The fact speaks for itself. The mode 
which all families should adopt, is to weigh their meat when 
it is sent home." — {Times, July 3, 1795.) 

"A few days ago, n acres of growing wheat, belonging to 
the Duke of Hamilton, in Scotland, were sold at ^20 per 
acre. This species of forestalling, we fear, is now too gene- 
rally attempted, which is evidently most injurious to the com- 
munity, viz., 'to buy corn growing in the fields.' This practice, 
surely, has a direct, and apparent, tendency to enhance the 
present price of corn : also, that of 'selling corn in the sheaf.' 
We think it expedient, however, to notify, that both these 



Old Times. 153 

practices are deemed highly criminal by the • common law of 
England,' and for which the offenders may be indicted, and 
punished, as they deserve, with great severity, viz., by fines, 
pillory, and imprisonment. See Inst. 197 : also Hawk c. 30." 
— {Times, Aug. 19, 1795.) 

" The contrivances to keep up the price of wheat, having 
been discovered, and defeated, we hope the attention of the 
worthy Chief Magistrate will now be directed towards some 
plan for the relief of the Metropolis, against the extortion 
of the Graziers, and Salesmen, in Smithfield Market. The 
prices of the latter, on Monday, were higher than almost ever 
remembered, and mutton is now sold at 7|d. per lb. What 
real cause there is for such extravagant prices, after such a mild 
winter, is a matter we are at a loss to account for." — (Times, 
April 13, 1796.) 

"An action for regrating, in Smithfield Market, is now 
pending in the Court of Common Pleas : against one of the 
five brothers, who have so long supported themselves, and their 
families, by jobbing in Cattle at that Market. A Carcass 
Butcher, in Whitechapel, is also in dread of a similar action, 
the penalties on which will be very heavy, as it is for purchas- 
ing near 70 oxen, on a Friday, driving them to his farm, near 
Clapton, and bringing them to Smithfield, for sale, on the 
following Monday." — (Times, Nov. 29, 1796.) 

Before this time of Scarcity, however, the good folks 
did not deny themselves luxuries of the table, nor, seem- 
ingly, care what they paid for them. 

" The first green peas which have been produced this season, 
were sold, on Monday, in Covent Garden market, at twelve 
shillings per pottle." — (Times, April 17, 1793.) 

" As a proof of the forwardness of the season, green peas 
have already made their appearance in Covent Garden market, 



154 Old Times. 

where they are 'retailed to the curious in vegetables at the 
moderate price of two guineas a quart." — {Times, March i, 
1 794-) 

" The Fishmongers Company are such jolly soles, as to have 
annually nine quarts of peas at a guinea a quart." — (Times, 
May 1 6, 1794.) 

" Lemons have attained a price never before arrived at in 
London, namely, ninepence each ; buying them wholesale, the 
price is at the rate of from 6d. to 8d. each. About 400,000 
were imported during the week from St. Ubes, and as a large 
supply is daily expected, the prices must of course fall." — 
( Times, /any. 2,' 1797.)! 

"The arrival of the Lisbon fleet, will make Lemons once 
more plenty. They were sold, a week ago, at the enormous 
price of is. a piece." — (Times, July 16, 1799.) 



It may be interesting to some to learn when Sea 
Kale first came into use. 

Advt. — "SEA-KALE, a new Culinary Vegetable Mr. 

Curtis respectfully informs the Nobility and Gentry, that the 
small quantity of Sea-Kale fit for the table, which he has to 
dispose of this season, will by his appointment, be sold by 
Messrs. Dickson and Anderson, Seedsmen, Covent Garden 
Market, to whom he will continue to send it daily, fresh cut, 
for the short period it may last. Printed directions for 
dressing it, are tied up with each bundle." — (Times, April 
3°, 1 795-) 

In the subjoined advertisement we learn the prices, 
and qualities, of various Wines, and the list gives us all 
the information required to find out the different sorts of 
wine then drank. 



Old Times. 



155 



"At Priddy's Foreign Warehouse, and Vaults, No. 14 
Poland St., a large quantity of the following Wines, &c, which 
being, himself, the Importer of, can warrant genuine, at the 
following prices, viz., at per Dozen : — 



Ten years old Sherry . . 25/ 

Red Port, vintage 1788 . . 20/ 

Old Lisbon 20/ 

Calcavella 22/ 

Fine Hock 30/ 

Vin de Grave 26/ 

Madeira 36/ 



Claret 36/ 

Ditto, first growth .... 42/ 

Burgundy 60/ 

Red Champagne .... 70/ 

White ,, 70/ 

Hermitage 42/ 

Frontigniac 36/ 



"Rich Aliatico, and Montepulciano, Florence Wines, real 
Cogniac Brandy, Jamaica Rum, Rotterdam Geneva, and Orange 
Shrub, on the very lowest terms." — (Times, April 16, 1793.) 



Coals, though, of course, not an article of Food, were 
undoubtedly 6f use in cooking it : and may therefore be 
mentioned here. Our Grandfathers paid very dearly for 
them : but it must be remembered there was no land 
carriage, and a continued contrary wind, or a " hot 
press," would leave the London Market bare. The 
magnificent basins of Inland Coals were scarcely known, 
and only those like the Moira Collieries, near to a Canal, 
could be worked. They were sold to the consumer at 
per Chaldron of 2800 lbs., and the prices below quoted 
represent them ex-ship. Add to this the cost of delivery 
and profit 12s., and take the Sovereign as being worth 
30s., and it will much account for the small stoves then 
in vogue. 

" The price of Coals in the Pool, yesterday, were : — Best 43s. 
Inferior sorts from 36s. to 38s. Delivered to housekeepers 
49s. to 44s. The price rose considerably yesterday from a 
report that several colliers had been captured." — (Times, 
Feby. 12, 1793.) 



156 Old Times. 



"COAL EXCHANGE. 

" On Monday the price was 70s. per Chaldron all sorts. 
On Wednesday, the price was 60s. and some sorts lower. 
On Yesterday, the price was 50s. to 45s. per Chaldron. 
We are happy at giving such an agreeable account to our 
readers." — (Times, March 7, 1794.) 

" The prices of Coals still continue very high, notwithstanding 
above 100 ships have, this week, arrived at market, which are 
nearly all sold from 38s. to 44s. per Chaldron : so that the best 
sorts cannot be fairly delivered under 50s. per Chaldron. The 
number of ships taken out of the trade, into the transport, 
and other services, is the cause of the present high price, as the 
demand is greater than the supply." — (Times, Oct. 4, 1794.) 

" Many complaints have been made of the high price of 
coals, and it is supposed to arise from a combination, but we 
are well assured no such cause exists. The long frost having 
stopped the navigation of the Thames, what coals remained in 
the lighters, and barges, were nearly exhausted at the wharfs, 
and naturally, every man possessed of a commodity, looks to 
extraordinary profits on unusual events, which has, we under- 
stand, occasioned six, and seven, guineas to be given for a 
chaldron of coals, within a few days past, but, had the frost 
continued, coals would have been considerably cheaper, than at 
present, as the ice admitted the coals being worked over it. 
There are, at present, near 50 sail of colliers in the river, not 
unladen, which contain about 10,000 chaldrons, for an imme- 
diate supply, (but not ten times that quantity, as erroneously 
stated in most of the papers) and, before they can be consumed, 
we may expect a fresh fleet at Market." — (Times, Jany. 30, 

I795-) 

" Yesterday, there was only one ship of coals, at Market, 
which sold at three guineas and a half per chaldron. About 
30 sail more were at sea, and forced into the Humber." — 
(Times, Feby. 24, 1795.) 



Old Times. 157 

"Coals were on Friday (12/A April) sold in the Pool at five 
guineas per Chaldron. There was only one ship-load at 
market." — {Times, April 15,' 1799.) 



THE ROAD AND STREETS. 

The Highways and Streets were in very far from 
good condition, the roads being full of ruts, and the 
streets when paved, were made of large " Cobble " 
Stones, and were full of holes, ofttimes very dangerous, as 
we shall see. The foot pavement, except in some of the 
best streets, which were flagged, was very narrow, and 
made of " Kidney " stones on end, such as may still 
be met with in the bye-ways of some country towns. 
Consequently no one stirred out more than they could 
help ; the men always on horseback, if single — by 
" Post," if accompanied by ladies. It will have been 
noticed in " Men's dress " that they all wear boots, if not 
in the house, and the reason is plain — they had to be 
protected against the mud of the streets, and ready for 
the saddle. Every man had to learn to ride, and no 
doubt this laid the foundation of the Continental opinion, 
that every Englishman is a good horseman. 

"Young Gentlemen during their Holidays, are supplied with 
gentle pleasant Horses of all sizes, and the most careful Attend- 
ance and Instructions for £2 12 6 
A Horse to ride for Exercise in the House 036 
Twelve lessons when convenient . . 276 



Sixteen lessons in four weeks 
Single lesson 

Book of Instructions for Ladies 
Breaking a horse 
-{Morning Post, Jany. 2, 1788.) 



270 
050 
056 
276 &c." 



158 Old Times. 

" Advt.— A CA UTION to all Gentlemen who drive Jobb 
Horses by their own Coachmen, the Gentleman paying yearly 
wages to them : From a Gentleman who has had experience of it. 
— That the Coachmaster and Coachmen do agree, the one to 
give, the other to receive, annually, a certain sum of money, 
which can be for no other purpose than to defraud their 
employers, demanding so much more for the price of their 
horses, to bribe the said Coachmen to conceal defects in them, 
and to engage the said Coachmaster to recommend the said 
Coachmen : and so vice-versa to employ each other, if out of 
place or business. This is a most dishonest, but general 
practice of the Coachmasters. The writer of this, to avoid and 
discourage the practice of this Knavery, has purchased his own 
horses, persuaded no other means will be effectual. This is 
written merely to put Gentlemen on their guard, at the expense 
of the Advertiser, and will not be inserted again." — (Times, 
July 2, 1795.) 

Of course those that could afford it travelled Post — 
which was charged one shilling per horse per mile, 
besides a gratuity to the " boy," but this was raised to 
fourteen pence in 1796, when food became so dear. 

" So great is the itch of pleasure at this time of year, that on 
Sundays it is difficult to find post-horses in London. Last 
Sunday General Fox, and several other persons of Considera- 
tion, who had business out of town, were confined for want 
of them, though they sent as far as the extremity of White- 
chapel." — (Times , Sept. 2, 1795.) 

"The rate of Posting still continues at i4d. per mile, and 
nothing but the unanimous determination of the public to 
resist so extravagant a charge, can possibly do it away. Some 
few Post Masters have, it is true, advertised at is., but the 
general rate still remains at i4d. This charge took its rise from 
the scarcity, and, consequently, the high price of corn : but, at 
this moment, when corn has fell one third, nothing can justify 
the continuance of what may be justly reprobated as an imposi- 
tion." — (Times, July 9, 1796.) 



Old Times. 159 

But it was not every one who could afford Posting or 
even the Stage Coach, — for them existed the " Stage 
Wagon " — a most cumbrous affair with very broad 
wheels — and some eight horses, the driver being mounted 
on a pony — so as to be able to ride round his team. 
The following is a very humorous story of a journey 
by Wagon : — 

"A DELIGHTFUL RIDE, 

" In the ten-wheeled Caravan, from Greenwich to 
London. 

"We were twenty-four passengers within side, and nine 
without. It was my lot to sit in the middle, with a very lusty 
woman on one side, and a very thin man on the other. ' Open 
the window,' said the former, and she had a child on her lap, 
whose hands and face were all besmeared with gingerbread. 
4 It can't be opened,' said a little prim coxcomb, ' or I shall 
get cold.' — ' But I say it shall, Sir,' said a Butcher, who sat 
opposite to him, and the Butcher opened it ; but, as he stood, 
or rather bent forward to do this, the caravan came into a rut, 
and the Butcher's head, by the suddenness of the jolt, came 
into contact with that of the woman who sat next to me, and 
made her nose bleed. He begged her pardon, and she 
gave him a slap on the face that sounded through the whole 
caravan. Two sailors, that were seated near the helm of this 
machine, ordered the driver to cast anchor at the next public- 
house. He did so ; and the woman next to me, called for a 
pot of ale, which she offered to me, after she had emptied 
about a pint of it, observing, that 'as how she loved ale 
mightily.' I could not drink, at which she took much offence ; 
and said, ' I was mighty squeamish ; but thank God, she was 
as good as I, and kept a lodging-house in Craven St., where she 
saw her betters every day, and so,' continues she, ' here's to you, 
my dear : ' and she finished the pot. A violent dispute now 
arose between two stout looking men, the one a Recruiting 
Sergeant, and the other a Gentleman's Coachman, about the 



160 Old Times. 

Rights of Man: and, having struck two or three blows in the 
Caravan, they got out into the road, to decide whether Tom 
Paine was an Atheist, or a Deist. In this contest, victory fell 
to the Sergeant, and the driver of the horses was so mauled by 
the leader of men, that he was lifted into the vehicle, where he 
sat in sullen silence all the rest of the journey. 

" Another dispute afterwards arose about politics, which was 
carried on with such warmth, as to draw the attention of the 
company to the head of the Caravan, where the combatants sat 
wedged together like two pounds of Epping butter, whilst a 
child incessantly roared at the opposite side, and the mother 
abused the two politicians for frightening her babe. The heat 
was now so great that all the windows were opened, and with the 
fresh air, entered clouds of dust, for the body of the machine 
is but a few inches from the surface of the road. 

"I trust, Mr. Conductor, you will give this journey to London, 
a place in your paper, and, I am, &c. &c. 

"Lucy Treadneedle." 
—(Times, Sept. 5, 1794.) 

It will be noticed that then, as now, the Times, was a 
powerful organ for calling public attention to social 
grievances, and that people " wrote to " that paper as at 
the present time. We, in our time, know the little social 
inconveniences arising from staying at Hotels, where, 
not only does the proprietor charge for attendance, which 
we, no more than the writer of this letter, can understand 
is not included in his servants' wages — but we, also, 
if we want good attendance, have to " tip " the servants 
as well. 

" To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. 

" Sir, — Having frequent occasion to travel many of the prin- 
cipal roads of England, I have often witnessed the exorbitant 
demands of Inn-keepers, and the no less serious ones of their 
domestics, sanctioned only by custom, yet arisen to such 



Old Times. 161 

a pitch as to become a burthen unable to be borne by the 
poor Tradesman who is obliged to travel to sell his goods, as 
as well as an inconvenience to the person in middling circum- 
stances of life, who, for his health, or otherwise, has occasion to 
travel. Grievances (the latter of which especially), are only 
suffered to exist from the disinclination people have to break 
through a custom, or to appear singular. Having hinted at 
the former, I shall only shew the nature, and point out a 
remedy for the latter. It is well known, that let an Inn- 
keeper's bill be ever so exorbitant, you must not only comply 
with it, but also give the servants just as much as if it was 
reasonable : so that there is no end of the expence : for instance, 
if a man who has a horse, puts up at an inn, besides the usual 
bill, he must at least give is. to the waiter, 6d. to the chamber- 
maid, 6d. to the hostler, and 6d. to the jack-boot, making 
together 2s. 6d., and this to be repeated every night he lays 
on the road (I speak now of what's expected from those who 
appear in middling circumstances of life). The same expence 
in proportion occurs in the course of the day : at breakfast, 
you must give at least 6d. between the waiter and hostler. If 
the traveller only puts up to have a refreshment, besides 
paying for his horse's standing, he must give 3d. to the hostler : 
at dinner 6d. to the waiter and 3d. to the hostler : at tea 6d. 
between them, so that he gives away in the day 2s. 6d., which 
added to the 2s. 6d. for the night, makes 5s. per day on an 
average to servants. Thus he is putting his hand in his pocket 
from morning till night, not merely to satisfy the Landlord's 
demand, but to appease the croaking of domestics, who, it is 
well known, will let you see, or feel, their displeasure in some 
way or other if you do not, so that it is disagreeable to go to 
that inn the second time where you do not behave with pro- 
fuseness at the first, and there is not only the above incon- 
venience, but also this, that after all your givings they are not 
satisfied, but often abuse you for your liberality. The follow- 
ing anecdote proves this : — Coming home from Colchester 
some time since, I put up at an Inn at Ingatestone, the Inn- 
keeper's bill was as follows : — Supper is., beer 3d., bed is., 
horse and corn is. id. — together 3s. md. I gave away as 

L 



1 62 Old Times. 

follows : waiter is., chambermaid 6d., jack-boot 6d., hostler, 
the change out of 2s. I paid him for the horse, being $d., 
together 2s. $d., being is. $d. less than the bill. Yet the 
hostler was so abusive, because I did not give him more than 
the odd $d. change, that he actually threatened me that he 
would mark me if I came there again. I therefore did, what 
I wish every one would do in the like case, punish him on the 
spot for his insolence. I appeared to relent that I had not 
given him more, and desired him to give me the half-pence 
again that I might see for silver for him, which after he had 
done, I rode off, leaving him to repent he had not kept what 
I first gave him. It may be alleged that these servants have 
little or no wages, and therefore ought to receive liberally. 
Be that as it may, it is very hard that I am to pay wages to 
another man's servants. I pay the master his bill, in which he 
makes a charge sufficient to cover his servants' wages, and then 
he leaves me to pay his servants besides. If Innkeepers have 
nothing to pay for servants, their charges ought to be reasonable 
in proportion. But I would meet another objection that is likely 
to be made, which is, that what is given to servants at inns is 
not to be considered as wages, but as their perquisites. There 
are two answers to this, the one, that the very notion of per- 
quisites, signifies something gotten over and above their usual 
wages, whereas it is notorious, that most Innkeepers allow 
their servants no wages : the other, that perquisites signify a 
gift, now a gift is free, and may be much, or little, as suits the 
inclination of the giver, but, according to the modern custom 
at inns, he is not permitted to use his discretion, but there 
must be a settled sum given to each servant, fixed as to the 
lowest quantum, though as much above that mark as he 
pleases, and, if he gives less than custom warrants, they have 
the impudence to tell him of it. Besides, why should Inn- 
keepers, be exempted from paying their servants wages, any 
more than any other tradesman. If I go into a shop, to buy 
a few yards of any thing, I am not charged so much for the 
trouble of the shopman who cut it off. Tradesmen are con- 
tented to pay their servants out of the profit of their bills, 
without saddling it upon their customers : and I am fully per- 



Old Times. 163 

suaded, were travellers of all descriptions to withhold for a 
certain time their usual gifts to servants at inns, it would ulti- 
mately tend to the benefit of those servants themselves, as well 
as the comfort of travellers, for when the servants find their 
finances so low, they would insist upon, and would not hire 
themselves without stipulated wages, after which, travellers 
might again resume their former generosity, and what they 
then gave, would be looked upon in the light it ought, as a 
gift, and not a debt. 

" A Constant Reader." 
— (Times, Oct. 17, 1795.) 

The following notices will show that, what with over- 
crowding, and bad roads, accidents were as frequent by 
road as they are now by rail — indeed, the per centage, 
considering the relative number of passengers, was much 
greater. The basket mentioned below, was a huge 
wicker work machine attached to the Coach, intended to 
carry parcels. 

" Yesterday the driver of the Chelmsford and London Stage 
Coach, was convicted before the Magistrates at the Public 
Office, Whitechapel, in three separate penalties of 40J. each, 
for suffering more than six persons to ride on the roof of the 
said Coach. 

" The owner and driver of the Bishop Stortford, and London, 
Stage Coach, was also convicted in the penalty of ^4 for the 
same offence : and the driver of the Westham Stage Coach, in 
the same penalty, for suffering eight persons to ride on the 
roof of the said Coach." — {Times, Oct. 5, 1795.) 

" In despite of continual and fatal accidents, not to mention 
the inferior consideration of pains and penalties, the Stage 
Coaches still continue to carry extra numbers on the outside. 
There were eleven on the coach," and box, of the Gosport 
Coach, beside the driver, and nine in the basket, on Thursday 
last." — (Times, Oct. 16, 1795.) 



164 Old Times. 

" The pavement in Bridge St. Blackfriars, which has been 
so long in a most dangerous state, has sunk near a foot more, 
within the last week, so that the roof of the main shore is 
every hour expected to give way." — {Times, Aug. 6, 1794.) 

" On Wednesday afternoon, about four o'clock, the Boston 
Coach broke down, on the lowest part of Snow Hill, soon after 
it left the Saracen's Head Inn. The outside passengers, 
which were fourteen in number, and mostly soldiers, were 
thrown with such violence on the pavement, that several were 
bruised, and one woman was taken to St. Bartholomew's 
Hospital, where she died, on Thursday night. The inside 
passengers, which were five, and a young child, were not much 
hurt. 

" The frequent accidents which arise from the outsides of 
coaches being so overladen, calls highly for reprehension. 
The laws are either inadequate to remedy the evil, or they are 
not properly enforced : and we sincerely hope that the coach- 
man, and those who are concerned, will be severely punished, 
as an example to prevent the same accidents in future. We 
think there should be a fresh Act of Parliament, and, if the 
inside passengers were empowered, after taking their seats, to 
hire a post-chaise where there was above a stipulated number 
(at the owner's expence), it would remedy the evil." — (Times, 
Aug. 8, 1795.) 

" The pavement in Bridge St. Blackfriars, still grows worse, 
and worse, and not the least notice is taking of it by the Paving 
Committee. This is a most scandalous act of neglect ; as, 
publicly, and privately, the parties have been applied to, who 
ought to make the necessary repairs. The ground has now 
sunk near three feet. In so well regulated a city, as that of 
London, this is a most disgraceful business." — {Times, 
Oct. 16, 1799.) 

" A few days since, the axle-tree of a carriage was broken 
in descending the slope of Blackfriars Bridge, in consequence 
of the very large hole, at the bottom of it, on the Surry-side, 



Old Times. 165 

which is in the highest degree dangerous. We are not certain 
that an indictment would not lay against the Trustees of the 
Surry Roads, for the scandalous manner in which they are 
kept. They vie with the Paviours, in some parts of the City, 
and we know not which are the worst of them. It is not to be 
conceived the number of horses that are foundered, by holes 
in the streets, and roads." — {Times, Oct. 5, 1799.) 

" From the dangerous state of the pavement in some parts 
of London, it might be supposed that the Public paid nothing 
towards it. The thoroughfare about the New Church, in the 
Strand, is so bad, that two, or three, accidents have lately 
happened by horses tumbling down, from their feet catching in 
the holes." — (Times, Sept. 30, 1799.) 



1 66 Old Times. 



GAMING, &c. 

We, in this Nineteenth Century of ours, are not so free 
from the vice of gambling, that we can afford the luxury 
of being particularly censorious over the habits of the 
last century. We have legislated against gambling, we 
are better educated, all our surroundings are refined, 
compared to those which our forefathers had to make the 
most of. Literature, Art, and Music, are all far more 
popular, and yet — are there not Clubs, thinly veiled 
indeed, but really, and truly, solely existing for card 
playing for high stakes, as much as Crockford's ever 
was ? Have we not reduced the Turf to a science ? and 
has it not come to such a pass, that an honest Nobleman 
like Lord Falmouth, will no longer run his race horses, 
because of the roguery on the Turf? Is not the Stock 
Exchange one huge Gamble ? Therefore, in reading the 
notes about gaming, in " Old Times," let us remember 
the beams in our own eyes, before making a fuss about 
the motes, that used to be in the eyes of those that are 
dead and gone. 

But, although Card playing was the rule at every 
house, in the evening, yet some did not play, and the 
utter weariness which is shewn in this little sketch of 
Gillray's, is extremely natural and vivid. 

It is in 1789 that we first hear of Lady Archer, who, 
with Lady Buckinghamshire, figures so prominently in 
keeping gaming tables. 




t /acly at a (jrd "Party orho does not pi ay.-/ /88. 



Old Times. 167 

" The Lady Archer, whose death was announced in this 
paper of Saturday, is not the celebrated character whose cos- 
metic powers have been long held in public estimation." — 
{Morning Post, Jan. 5, 1789.) 

" It is said that the dealers in Carmine and dead white, as 
well as the Perfumers in general, have it in contemplation to 
present an address to Lady Archer, in gratitude for her not 
having died according to a late alarming report." — {Morning 
Post, Jan. 8, 1789.) 



" A Kick up at a Hazard Table," by Rowlandson, is 
not only well drawn — but, doubtless, depicts a gambling 
affray, to the life. 

Lady Archer, and Lady Buckinghamshire did not 
monopolise the gaming tables, there were other ladies in 
the field, and, as the game generally played, was Faro, 
these brelandicrcs were called Faro's Daughters. 

" Mrs. Sturt's house, in St. James Square, was opened yes- 
terday evening, for the first time this season, for public play. 
The visitors were numerous." — (Times, Feb. 5, 1793.) 

" Many of our young sprigs of fashion, when the campaign 
opens, will have other game to attend to than the game of 
Faro. By risquing their persons they may serve their 
country ; but by risquing their property, they can neither 
benefit the nation, nor do any good to themselves. Cocking 
a fire lock will redound more to their honour than cocking a 
card : and as they are fond of a game of Hazard, let them 
take the chance of the field, in preference to that of the 
gaming table : 

" Some of the Faro Ladies have opened their play houses, and 
announced the Road to Ruin until further notice. The 
Gamesters was publicly rehearsed in St. James Square on 
Monday night." — (Times, Feb. 6, 1793.) 



1 68 Old Times. 

"The number of new gaming-houses, established at the 
West End of the town, is, indeed, a matter of very serious evil : 
but they are not likely to decrease while examples of the same 
nature are held forth in the higher circles of life. It is needless 
to point out any one of these houses in particular : it is suf- 
ficient for us to expose the tricks that are practised at many 
of them to swindle the unsuspecting young men of fortune who 
are entrapped into these whirlpools of destruction. The first 
thing necessary is, to give the guests a good dinner and plenty 
of wine, which many of these houses do, gratis. When they 
are sufficiently intoxicated, and, having lost all the money 
about them, their acceptance is obtained to Bills of Exchange 
to a considerable amount, which frequently are paid to avoid 
the disagreeable circumstance of a public exposition in a 
Court of Justice, which is always threatened, though the 
gamesters well know that no such measure durst be adopted 
by them. 

"Should any reluctance, or hesitation, be shewn by the 
injured party, to accept these bills, he is shewn into a long 
room, with a target at the end of it, and several pistols lying 
about, where he is given to understand these sharpers practice 
a considerable time of the day in shooting at a mark, and have 
arrived to such perfection in this exercise, that either of them 
can shoot a pistol ball within an inch of the mark, from the 
common distance taken by duellists. A hint is then dropped, 
that further hesitation will render the use of the pistols 
necessary, and which will again be the case, should he ever 
divulge what he has seen, and heard. 

" If further particulars, or proofs, are wanting, they may be 
known on application to certain Military characters, who have 
already made some noise in the world." — {Times, Feb. 14, 
1793) 

The Illustration " Modern Hospitality, or a Friendly 
Party in High Life," is by Gillray, 31st Mar. 1792, and in 
it we see Lady Archer, and Lady Buckinghamshire, 
keeping a Faro Bank : and, as they are rather passe'es, 



Old Times. 169 

the picture has the following, " To those earthly Divinities 
who charmed 20 years ago, this Honorable method of 
banishing mortifying reflections is dedicated. O, Woman ! 
Woman ! everlasting is your power over us, for in youth, 
you charm away our hearts, and in your after years you 
charm away our purses ! " 

It is a pity we have not the key to the portraits of the 
bystanders, for portraits they, undoubtedly, are, because 
there is such individuality in the expression of their 
several countenances. The players we can easily recog- 
nise — Lady Archer, at the extreme left, has won largely, 
rouleaux of gold, and bank notes, are before her, and on 
her right hand are two heaps of loose gold ; — with what 
a smiling countenance does the painted old gambler shew 
her cards, saying, " The Knave wins all ! " 

Her next door neighbour, the Prince of Wales, who 
has staked, and lost, his last piece, lifts his hands, and 
eyes, in astonishment at the luck. Lady Buckingham- 
shire has doubled her stake, playing on two cards, and 
is evidently annoyed at her loss — whilst poor, black 
muzzled Fox, laments the loss of his last three pieces. 

" The profits of Faro are become so considerably reduced, 
that most of the Banks now lose almost every evening, after 
defraying the expences of the house, which are very consider- 
able. Those public- spirited Ladies who give such frequent 
routes, do so at a certain gain : for the sum of twenty-five 
guineas is regularly advanced by the bank holders towards the 
night's expences. The punters at Mrs. Hobart's, and Mrs. 
Sturt's, Faro Banks have dropped off considerably : and those 
who continue, are got so knowing, that heavy complaints are 
made that they bring no grist to the mill. There have not 
been above eight punters at Mrs. Sturt's bank, any night this 
season. The pigeons are all flown, and the punters are nothing 
better than hawks." — {Times, Feb. 10, 1793.) 






170 Old Times. 

"No less than six Faro Banks are held in Pall Mall, viz., 
Philips's, Nelson's, Curtis's, Hall's, Whitnoll's, and Bullock's." 
— {Times, Feb. 18. 1793.) 

" It is become necessary to put our young men on their 
guard against the swindling tricks of some French ladies in 
this metropolis, of elevated rank, who have introduced assem 
blies in their lodgings, and houses, of an evening, for the pur 
pose of attracting company, whose pockets are to be taxed by 
Gallic address, for the support of these nocturnal establish- 
ments. 

" In one of these, the Lady who presides, has not yet lost her 
personal charms, nor those arts of seduction, and that address, 
for which her well-informed countrymen are so notorious. She, 
however, outwitted herself some day since, by employing one 
of her mitred attendants to dispose of a watch set with 
diamonds. This right reverend Father in God turned pedlar, 
in his extreme zeal to execute the orders of his fair hostess, 
offered the bauble to a gentleman who, the evening before, had 
been present at this splendid assemblage of Gallic Noblesse, 
and had seen the watch by the side of the lady herself. On 
finding that double the value was demanded for the trinket, he 
was at no loss to discover the ways and means by which this 
gaudy display of independence, comfort, and hilarity, was 
supported." — {Times, Feb. 27, 1793.) 

" The Banking Ladies in St. James Square, do not see 
themselves much obliged to the Abbe de St. Farre, and his 
brother, for introducing so many noble Emigrants to their 
houses. These people come with their crown pieces and half- 
guineas, and absolutely form a circle round the Faro tables, 
to the total exclusion of our English Lords and Ladies, who 
can scarcely get one punt during a whole evening.'' — {limes, 
March 14, 1793.) 

" The play at the Faro Banks is reduced to so low a 
standard, except where they punt on tick, that a rouleau of 20 
guineas is quite a novelty." — {Times, March 19, 1793-) 







s^ 



V5 






4 s 



^ 

i 
^ 

o 

^ 

X 



Old Times. 171 

" A principal Faro Bank was broken twice last week — on 
Monday night at Mrs. Hobart's, and on Wednesday at Mrs. 
Concannon's. On the first night it lost 2000, and, on the 
last, 600 guineas. Lord C. S******* is one of the keenest 
punters of the present day. Poor Mazzinghi, who deals the 
cards at Mrs. Sturt's Bank, was threatened on Tuesday night, 
by his Lordship, to have his bones broken, because he disputed 
the noble Lord's intention of cocking a card. The money was 
not deposited on the card in the regular manner, but the 
young Lord said he intended to stake on the winning card, 
and therefore claimed it as if he had actually done so. Some- 
thing was muttered about the highway, but it was impossible 
it could allude to the circumstance in question." — (Times, 
April 29, 1793.) 

" Mrs. G. is said to understand Faro better than any other 
Lady of the town, particularly in the art of doubling the corner 
of a card, so as to win triple stakes if it is successful. She 
has doubled the Faro Bank holders out of so much money, 
that they shrink at the sight of her presence. There is so 
much running upon tick with the Faro Tables, that, like the 
Country Banks, they are breaking every day. They will soon 
want some other assistance than Cards, and Wax Lights, to keep 
up some of the Establishments at the West end of the town. 

" The Faro Bank holders now lose money almost every 
evening. The punters are now becoming the rooks, and the 
bankers the pigeons. The Ladies understand the game so well, 
and play so keen, that it requires the eyes of Argus to detect 
all their tricks. As little Quick says in the play, a greenhorn 
has only to put down his money, and he is sure to find some 
one to take it up for him." — (Times, May 1, 1793) 

" A Banking Lady, in St. James Square, is about to com- 
mence a prosecution, because it is said, that there was much 
filching at her Faro table. The house was quite in an uproar 
on Tuesday night, in consequence of a paragraph that appeared 
in a Morning Paper of the preceding day. The Lady vows 
she will call in the aid of an Attorney to support her reputation : 



1 7 2 Old Times. 

and observes, that the credit of her house will suffer if such 
reports are permitted to go unpunished. The Faro Ladies 
are, in the sporting phrase, almost done up. Jewels, trinkets, 
watches, laces, &c, are often at the pawnbrokers, and scarce any- 
thing is left to raise money upon, except their pads. If justice 
is to be hoodwinked, and gambling, and sharking, permitted, 
why not make it an article of revenue, as in foreign countries, 
and lay a heavy tax on it. A tax on excessive gaming would, 
in the course of a year, produce as much as would fit out a 
50 gun ship." — {Times, May 2, 1793.) 

"The war has lessened the receipt of the Faro Tables, 
insomuch, that they can barely allow lemonade. 

" The Faro Tables now really come within the true meaning 
of plundering shops. They are attended by a gang of sharpers, 
who talk of knocking down the Croupiers if any offence is 
taken at the most barefaced frauds. Surely the Police may 
now make forcible entry into the Houses, fashionable, or 
unfashionable, which hold out a bait for the purpose of 
robbery." — (Times, May 3, 1793.) 

"The Faro Bank holders at the fashionable routs are 
nearly done up ; for what with the punters running away with 
their winnings, and never paying when they lose, and the 25 
guineas per night, paid to the fashionable landladies for the 
use of their houses, the profits are pared down to a very 
nothing." — (Times, March 28, 1794.) 

" Lord Hampden's Faro Bank is broken up for the present 
season. Lady Buckinghamshire, Mrs. Sturt, and Mrs. 
Concannon alternately divide the Beau monde at their respec- 
tive houses. Instead of having two different hot suppers, at 
one and three o'clock in the morning, the Faro Banks will now 
scarcely afford bread and cheese, and porter. 

" One of the Faro Banks in St. James Square lost 7000^ 
last year by bad debts. A young son of Levi is a consider- 
able debtor to one of them ; but not finding it convenient to 
pay what is not recoverable by law, he no longer appears in 
these fashionable circles." — (Times, April 2, 1794.) 




I 

I 

a? 






i 



\ 



Old Times. 173 

"A Card.— The Lady Gamblers at the West end of the 
town, present their compliments to several Ex noble Emigres, 
who frequent their card routs, and inform them, through the 
channel of this paper, that their absence would be more 
agreeable than their company. They beg leave to suggest that 
hot suppers, and French wines, brilliant illuminations, cards, 
and other expences, cannot be afforded out of the profits of 
such peddling play as staking an ecu, or half a guinea, on the 
turn up of a card, and they beg leave to observe, that it is not 
considered as a mark of their good breeding, to engross the 
whole round of the Faro table, which might be turned to so 
much better advantage, by the pluckings of a few rich young 
Lords, and Commoners, who would wish to sport their rouleaus. 
It is hoped this hint may be attended to, as it may prevent 
further observation." — {Times, April 3, 1794.) 

" It is impossible to conceive a more complete system of 
fraud and dishonour than is practised every night at the Faro 
Banks. Though every table has four croupiers, yet the Bank 
holders find, that double the number are necessary to watch 
all the little tricks, and artifices, of some of the fashionable 

punters. But Mrs. G beats all her associates in the art of 

doubling, or cocking a card." — {Times, April 4, 1794.) 

"The Faro Banks being no longer a profitable game, 
certain Ladies in St. James' Square have substituted another 
instead of it, called Roulet: but it is in fact only the old game 
of E.O. under a different title. Roulet is now therefore the 
order of the night r — {Times, June 25, 1794.) 

"The late King was passionately fond of Masquerades, 
where there was always a Pharo Bank prepared for his enter- 
tainment. Upon one occasion the crowd was so great in all 
parts of the Theatre, that the late Mr. Crawford was called 
for, and ordered to stop the further admission of company at 
the door : in which, however, he found so much difficulty, 
that 2700 guineas were forced into his pocket, whilst he stood 
purposely to advertise the public that there was no more 
room." — {Times, April 13, 1795.) 



1 74 Old Times. 

"The two gambling houses in St. James's Square are in 
despair. The suppers are ordered with great caution : and of 
things that will keep. The two last companies have been 
composed, literally, of the privileged wives, and of foreigners." 
— {Times, Dec. 2, 1795.) 

" It is to the credit of the rising generation of females, that 
they have unanimously quitted those infamous meetings, called 
Private Pharoes, where some of their shameless Mammas, and 
the faded reputations of the present age, still expose their 
vices, and cheat the boys who have not been long enough in 
the army, to wear out their first cockades." — {Times, Dec. 30, 

I795-) 

"To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. 

" Sir, — London is certainly an eligible place for persons who 
have nothing but their labour to depend on, to get forward in 
life, provided they steer clear of the many snares, and tempta- 
tions, which hover in every alley, street, winding, and corner. 

" The mischief is, however, that the generality of young mei), 
the moment they set foot in town, or, if brought up in the 
Metropolis, directly they enter the world on their own account, 
are hurried away, thoughtlessly, with the stream of error, and 
dissipation. If he happens to be a young man possessed of a 
moderate independence, without the suggestion of prudence, 
the caution of experience, the councils of wisdom or the 
restraint of authority, his whole conduct is then influenced by 
the passion with which he is actuated, which becomes at once, 
whether good or bad, his impulse, and his guide. 

" The Play-house is the first place of resort, which from the 
frequency of his visits, instead of being an instructive amuse- 
ment, or a moral lesson, turns out a rendezvous of intrigue, 
and intemperance, where he soon acquires an intimacy with 
the idle, the profligate, the gambler, and the prostitute, who 
eye him as their lawful prey, and with all that ease, dexterity, 
and artifice, which a knowledge of the town, and its vicissi- 
tudes, has furnished them with, they imperceptibly lead him 
from one crime to another, till at length he becomes extra- 




^ 






I **%/%£ 



Old Times. 175 

vagant, and irregular, callous, and abandoned. Bagnios, 
gaming-tables, horses, and black-legs, are now his only wish, 
theme, and delight, and, so long as his pocket will endure the 
burden, so long, and no longer, is he duped, flattered, caressed, 
and encouraged, by those who surround him. But everything 
must have an end, and enormous expenditures cannot keep 
pace with that income which should be managed with care 
and frugality. The young Gentleman runs short, as it is 
termed, and, on his first embarrassment, is advised to apply 
for the assistance of some friendly advertising money lender, 
who, upon proper security, has the modesty to procure him 
from time to time, sums of money, at the equitable premium of 
100 per cent. A repetition so involves him, that, by degrees, 
his estate falls into the hands of Mr. Usurer, who takes an 
absolute assignment of his estate, for a consideration less than 
half its true value : and reflection never once enters his head, 
but he unfortunately squanders the last shilling : but it is, now, 
he conceives, a folly to repent, or retreat : consequently he 
gets into debt, is arrested, carried to a spunging house, 
and from thence is removed to the King's Bench, or Fleet 
Prison. 

" Far be it from me to throw any odium on an unfortunate 
class of people immured in the walls of either of those places, 
there are no doubt, imprisoned, as worthy, and as good a set 
of people, as any in society. But the young spark I am 
speaking of, being mortified at his late companions standing 
aloof, and resigning him to his fate, becomes loaded with 
obloquy, associates with characters equally as vicious as 
himself, smoaks, swears, and carouses, and, all at once, is 
wholly lost, as it were to himself, and to the world. 

"R. K— y." 
—(Times, Dec. 31, I795-) 

" Capt. H. of the Guards, the nephew of the Banker, who a 
short time since lost 13,000 guineas at one sitting, at Back- 
gammon, to an Irish Gambler, revenged himself last week for 
this loss, by winning the enormous sum of 45,000 Guineas, at 
Billiards, in one night, of Mr. B. S. of the Guards. It is said 



ijd Old Times. 

that ,£25,000 of the money was paid him the next day." — 
{Times, March 16, 1796.) 

" It is said to be the intention of some of the leading circles 
in the Fashionable World, to abolish the tax of Card-money} as 
an imposition upon hospitality. This would prove the return 
of good sense, inasmuch as it tends to substantiate the truth — 
that when one person invites another to partake of the con- 
viviality of his house, he should not lay an impost upon him, 
even more exorbitant than that which he would pay, were he 
to attend a Tavern Club. When a friend is invited, it is an 
insult to friendship to make that friend pay for his entertain- 
ment."— {Times, Dec. 17, 1794-) 

" The tabbies at Bath are in a state of insurrection, in con- 
sequence of an example set by Lady Elcho, who neither visits, 
nor receives, company \hd\ pay for Cards: the laudable refor- 
mation is adopted so generally, that many of the Dowagers, 
who have so long fed upon Card-money, are turning their 
thoughts to some more creditable means of earning their 
livelihood." — {Times, March 22, 1796.) 

" We hope the Ladies in London, who stand upon a nice 
point of honour, will follow the example of the Bath Ladies, 
and exclude the odious, and pitiful, custom of taking card- 
money at their houses. It is a meanness, which no persons 
who pretend to the honour of keeping good company, ought 
to allow. We are afraid that many a party is formed, rather 
to derive benefit from the Card tables, than for the sake of 
hospitality." — {Times, March 24, 1796.) 

"We hope, now that the business of informations against 
the Gambling Houses has found its way into the Court of 
King's Bench, that we shall hear of some effectual measures 
being taken to suppress them. What other than the most 
unworthy considerations could have suffered these houses to 
be open night after night, in defiance of every law, and to the 

1 The guests paid a small sum each, for every new Pack of Cards used, 
which it was supposed the servants took. 







Si 

I 
to 

i 

°3 



■a 






Old Times. 177 

destruction of young women, whose parents are so profligate, 
as to take them thither. If certain Mammas have no regard 
for their reputation, surely they should consider that their 
daughters are yet to be provided for. 

" We state it as a fact, within our own knowledge, that two 
Ladies of Fashion who keep open houses for Gaming, at the 
West End of the Town, have lately paid large douceurs^ to 
ward off the hand of justice." — (Times, Apr. 23, 1796.) 

"The Gambling-houses in and about Oxenden St., live 
in a stile of unprecedented luxury, and dissipation. It was 
stated some time ago, in the Court of King's Bench, that their 
dinners amounted to ^150,000 per annum." — (Times, May 27, 
1796.) 

These two illustrations are almost Hogarthian in their 
contrast, and preach a homily, better than pages of text 
would do, on the similarity of plunder. St. James, with 
Lady Archer and Lady Buckinghamshire quarrelling over 
gold, bank notes, a sword, and an Order. One other lady, 
probably Lady Mount Edgcumbe, scrutinising a bill — 
whilst the fourth, with a pile of gold, and notes, before 
her, looks calmly on. The artist (who, unfortunately, is 
anonymous,) shows what very little difference there is 
between that, and the woman of St. Giles — who, to the 
accompaniment of Gin, are dividing their spoil, a pipe, a 
foot rule, a razor, &c. — little things reft from working 
men — on a very common deal table. 

It was about this time that special attention was called 
to this gaming mania, and Gillray (?) on the 16th May, 
1796, published a Caricature called "Faro's Daughters, 
or the Kenyonian blow up to gamblers." Here we see 
the Lady Archer, and Mrs. Concannon, placed together in 
the pillory, and mutually upbraiding each other. 

The motif for this picture was a speech of Lord 

M 



178 Old Times. 

Kenyon's, who, at a trial to recover £15, won at gaming, 
on Sunday, at a public house — commented very severely 
on the hold, the vice of gaming had, on all classes of 
society, from the highest, to the lowest. The former, he 
said, set the example to the latter — and, he added, " They 
think they are too great for the law ; I wish they could 
be punished," — and then continued, " If any prosecutions 
of this kind are fairly brought before me, and the parties 
are justly convicted, whatever be their rank, or station, 
in the country — though they be the first ladies in the 
land — they shall certainly exhibit themselves in the 
pillory." 

"A new stratagem has been hit on to gain early intelligence 
of the drawings of the ensuing Irish Lottery. As Pigeons 
are found sometimes not to fly quick enough, some of our 
speculating Lottery Rooks have been for some time past trying 
experiments on high eminences in North Wales, by exhibiting 
rockets about seven o'clock in the evening. It is to be seen 
whether this mode of communication can be rendered suffi- 
ciently intelligible, to answer the purposes of fraud." — (Times, 
Nov. 4, 1796.) 

" It is said, and we hope with truth, that the Archbishop of 
Canterbury, at the head, and with the concurrence of the 
Episcopal Lords, means to introduce a Bill into Parliament to 
prevent % gambling on a Sunday. An act at present does exist 
against this pernicious practice ; but the penalty amounts to a 
fine, that the Groom-porters at Hazard, or the Dealer at Faro, 
can with ease pay by the profits of an hour. The punishment 
for the offence of playing any game of chance on a Sunday is, 
by this new intended Bill, to be transportation for seven years 
to Botany Bay. The owner of the house, by a particular 
clause, is more severely dealt with. He, or she, permitting 
such gambling, shall be transported for life." — (Times, Feb. 13, 
1797) 




NO 






to 






Old Times. 179 

"PUBLIC OFFICE, MARLBOROUGH St; FARO 
BANKS. On Saturday came on to be heard, informations 
against Lady Buckinghamshire, Lady Elizabeth Luttrell, 
Mrs. Sturt, and Mr. Concannon, for having, on the night 
of the 30th of last January, played at Faro, at Lady Bucking- 
hamshire's house, in St. James's Square, and Mr. Martindale 
was charged with being the proprietor of the table. 

"The evidence went to prove that the Defendants had 
gaming parties at their different houses by rotation, and that 
when they met at Lady B.'s, the witnesses used to wait upon 
them in the gambling room, and that they played at E.O., 
Rouge et JVoir, &c, from about eleven, or twelve, till three, 
or four, o'clock in the morning. After hearing Counsel, the 
Magistrates convicted Hy. Martindale in the penalty of ^200, 
and each of the Ladies in £,$o. The Information against Mr. 
Concannon was quashed, on account of his being summoned 
by a wrong Christian name." — {Times, Mar. 13, 1797.) 

The Magistrates were not quite so severe as Lord 
Kenyon had promised to be, should he ever get any of 
these ladies into his clutches : perhaps they had heard 
of the recent loss of Lady Buckinghamshire's, when in 
Feb y - her Faro Bank was stolen, or, at least, she said it 
had been. Gillray caricatured it very cleverly — as also 
he did in the accompanying illustration, " Discipline a la 
Kenyon " — in which the Lord Chief Justice, is admini- 
stering a sound flogging to Lady Buckinghamshire, 
whilst Lady Archer, and Mrs. Concannon, stand in the 
pillory, guarded by a stalwart constable. 

" The expence of entertainments at a Gaming House of the 
highest class, in St. James' Square, during the eight months of 
last season, has been said to exceed 6000 Guineas/ what must 
be the profits to afford such a profusion ? " — {Times, March 21, 
1797) 

" The Pharo Trade is likely to experience a more severe 



i So Old Times. 

check from the recent refusal of some fashionable Gamesters 
to liquidate their debts, than from the accumulated terrors of 
Police persecution. If the punters won't pay, the dealers may 
as well shut up shop."— (Times, Sept. 23, 1797.) 

" If a man should happen, in a Cockpit, to make a bet 
which he is not able to answer, he is put into a basket, and 
pulled up to the ceiling, where he remains suspended during 
the sport. It is recommended to the Pharo Bankers to 
institute some such punishment for the Lady ' Levanters.'" — 
(Times, Sept. 23, 1997.) 

" To such a height has the spirit of gambling arisen, that at 
some of the great Tables it is not uncommon to see the stake 
consist wholly of property in kind. A house of furniture was 
last week lost to a Lady in the neighbourhood of Pall Mall. 

" The successful party had played against it, the stock of a 
farm in the County of Essex." — (Times, Sept. 25, 1797.) 

" At some of our first Boarding Schools, the fair pupils are 
now taught to play whist, and cassino. Amongst their winning 
ways, this may not be the least agreeable to Papa and 
Mamma. 

" It is calculated, that a clever child, by its cards, and its 
novels, may pay for its own education." — (Times, Nov. 2, 
I797-) 

"At a boarding-school in the neighbourhood of Moor- 
fields, the mistress complains that she is unable to teach her 
scholars either Whist, or Pharo. However, she says, they play 
perfectly well at Kissino, and all-fours." — (Tunes, JNov. 2, 
I797-) 

" So completely has gambling got the better of dancing, that 
at a private Ball, last week, a Gentleman asking a young Lady, 
from Bath, to dance the two next dances, she very ingenuously 








5 



Old Times. 181 

replied/ Yes, if you will play two rubbers at Cassino.'" — (Times, 
Dec. 22, 1797.) 

"Gaming, that hydra of calamities, has again made its 
appearance with its black catalogue of horrors. Notwithstand- 
ing the late interference of the Police, there are at present, 
exclusive of subscription tables, no less than 18 public gambling 
houses, at the West End of the Town. The golden table in 
Leicester Square takes the lead in guilty pre-eminence. The 
gaming crimps are already very numerous. They dress well, 
frequent the most fashionable taverns, and coffee houses, and, 
having succeeded in insinuating themselves into company, take 
an opportunity of introducing a card, or bill of fare, of their 
respective establishments." — {Times, Sept. 13, 1798.) 

"Last week 1272 packs of cards, unstamped, pretended to 
be made for exportation, but really intended for home con- 
sumption, were burned in the High Street of Shoreham, by 
order of the Commissioners." — (Times, Dec. 6, 1798.) 

"In every part of the Metropolis, that most destructive 
game of E. O. 1 is now in high practice, but more particularly 
so in the neighbourhood of S. James's Street, Pall Mall, and 
what is called the fashionable end of the town. The Tables, 
even if they were fairly constructed, must be the ruin of all 
adventurers ; because, in the course of one hour, they play at 
a game where the Table has clearly one hundred and twenty- 

1 " A thousand witnesses might be produced to prove, that at every 
Ridolio, part of the company is seated at a round table, which has a hollow, 
moveable, circle in the middle, with a declivity from the centre, and its 
circumference divided into little separate cavities, or cells, distinguished 
by the letters E, and O, placed over them alternately : the hollow circle is 
put in motion, and a small ivory ball thrown upon it in a contrary direc- 
tion ; after several turns, the inclination of the surface carries the ball down 
towards the cavities prepared for its reception, in one of which, having 
rebounded several times, it at last rests, and the parties concerned in this 
interesting event, succeed, or fail, as they chance to have chosen, or not, 
the letter under which the ball happens to lie." — "The World," No. 180, 
iothjune, 1756. 



1 82 Old Times. 

four chances to one in its favor within that hour. If this does 
not rouse the Magistracy, Justice may then be announced to 
be in a somniferous state — occasioned probably, by a yellow 
mineral application." — {Times, June 22, 1795.) 

"It is impossible that the Magistrates can be ignorant of 
the number of E. O. Tables, now held at the West end of the 
town. At one of these, established close to King's Place, a 
young man lost, on Sunday, ^1500."— {Times, June 20, 1795.) 

"PRIVATE LOTTERIES. 

"Amongst the various species of Gaming that have ever 
been practised, we think none exceeds the mischiefs, and 
calamities, that arise from the practice of private Lotteries, 
which at present are carrying on, in various parts of the town, 
to very alarming extents, much to the discredit of those whose 
province it is to suppress such nefarious practices, as they 
cannot be ignorant of such transactions. ' The little go,' which 
is the technical term for a private Lottery, is calculated only 
for the meridian of those understandings, who are unused to 
calculate, and discriminate, between right, and wrong, and 
roguery, and fair-dealing ; and, in this particular case, it is 
those who compose the lower order of society, whom it so 
seriously affects, and on whom it is chiefly designed to operate. 
No man of common sense can suppose that the Lottery Wheels 
are fair, and honest, or that the proprietors act upon principles 
anything like honor, or honesty ; for, by the art, and contri- 
vance, of the Wheels, they are so constructed, with secret 
springs, and the application of gum, glue, &c, in the. internal 
part of them, that they can draw the numbers out, or keep 
them in, at pleasure, just as it suits their purposes ; so that the 
insurer, robbed, and cajoled, by such unfair means, has not 
the most distant chance of ever winning : the whole being a 
gross fraud, and imposition, in the extreme. We understand 
the most notorious of these standards of imposition are situ- 
ated in Carnaby Market, Oxford Road, in the Borough, 
Islington, Cierkenwell, and various other places, most of 



Old Times. 183 

which are under the very nose of Magistracy, in seeming 
security, bidding defiance to law, and preying upon the vitals 
of the poor and ignorant. 

" We hope the Magistrates of each jurisdiction, and those 
who possess the same power, will perform their duty on behalf 
of the poor, over whom they preside, and put a stop to such 
a growing, and alarming, evil, of such pernicious, and dangerous 
tendency : particularly, as the Proprietors are well-known bad 
characters, consisting of needy beggars, desperate swindlers, 
gamblers, sharpers, notorious thieves, and common convicted 
felons, most of whose names stand recorded in the Newgate 
Calendar for various offences of different descriptions." — 
{Times, July 22, 1795.) 

" The term of little goes for the private lotteries is apt 
enough, for the poor devils who risk their property there, 
have but little, arid that little goes to nought. 

" If the wheels of fortune, and the cash, seized at the 
private lotteries, become the property of the police runners, 
the old adage will be strongly verified, ' What is got over the 
devil's back, will be spent under his belly.'" — {Times, Aug. 

*3> I795-) 

" On Friday night last, in consequence of searching warrants 
from the Parochial Magistrates of St. James's, Westminster, 
upwards of 30 persons were apprehended at the house of one 
M'Call, No. 2, Francis St., near Golden Square, and in the 
house of J. Knight, King St., where the most destructive 
practices to the poor were carrying on, that of Private Lotteries 
(called Little Goes.) Two wheels, with the tickets, were 
seized on the premises. Upon examination of those persons, 
who proved to be the poor deluded objects that had been there 
plundered, they were reprimanded, and discharged. 

" The wives of many industrious mechanics, by attending 
these nefarious houses, have not only been duped out of their 
earnings (which ought to have been applied to the providing 
bread for their families) but have even pawned their beds, 
wedding rings, and almost every article they were possessed of 
for that purpose." — {Times, Aug. 11, 1795.) 



184 Old Times. 

But nothing was said against the big State Lotteries 
— which were going on without let, or hindrance — and, 
absolutely, educating the people in the taste for gambling. 
Here are two anecdotes of the lottery : — 

" Dr. B., a physician at Lime (Dorset), a few days since, being 
under pecuniary embarrassment, and his house surrounded 
by bailiffs, made his escape by a window, into a neighbour's 
house, from whence he fled to London. The furniture was 
seized, and the sale actually commenced, when it was stopped 
by a letter, stating that the Doctor, upon his arrival in London, 
found himself the proprietor of the ,£20,000 prize. We 
guarantee the truth of this fact." — {Times, Dec. 27, 1797.) 

" The £20,000 prize, drawn on Friday, is divided amongst 
a number of poor persons : a female servant in Brook St., 
Holborn, had a sixteenth ; a woman who keeps a fruit-stall 
in Grays-Inn-lane another ; a third is possessed by a servant 
of the Duke of Roxburghe's ; a fourth by a Chelsea Carrier 
of vegetables to Covent Garden; one eighth belongs to a 
poor family in Rutlandshire, and the remainder is similarly 
divided." — {Times, Mar. 19, 1798.) 



Of Horse Racing we do not hear much — the prizes 
were small — and gambling on the Turf was not reduced 
to a Science as it is now-a-days. Even when attending 
races, the chief losses were at the gaming tables which 
accompanied them. 

" Poor Newmarket is completely done up ! The Spring 
Meeting boasts so few bets in the calendar of gambling, that 
the chance will not pay post-chaise hire to the black legs. 
Thus falls the destructive sport of the Turf — and, as that is 
the case, it would do honour to his Majesty to change the 
King's Plates into rewards for the improvement of Agriculture." 
— {Times, April 17, 1794.) 




I 



I 






Old Times. 185 

"The Duke of Queensberry was a principal loser at 
Epsom Races. The Noble Duke had his vis-a-vis, and six 
horses, driving about the course, with two very pretty emigrees 
in it. The Duke was in his cabriolet. The Duke of Bedford, 
Lords Egremont, and Derby, were also on the course. 
Several carriages were broken to pieces : and one Lady had 
her arm broken. 

"There was much private business done in the swindling 
way at the last Epsom races. One black legged fellow cleared 
near a thousand pounds by the old trick of an E.O. Table. 
Another had a. faro table, and was on the eve of doing business, 
when he was detected with a palmed card : almost the whole 
of what may be justly styled ' vagabond gamblers ' of London 
were present. 

" Mr. Bowes, half brother to the Earl of Strathmore, was 
robbed of a gold watch, and a purse, containing 30 guineas, 
at Epsom races, on Thursday last. Many other persons 
shared a similar fate, both on the same evening, and Friday. 
Upwards of 30 carriages were robbed coming from the races." 
—{Times, May 25, 1795.) 

" Never since racing was patronised by the Merry Monarch, 
has the Turf 'been so much on the decline as at this period. 
His Grace of Bedford is the only person who retains a con- 
siderable stud. Lord Grosvenor has disposed of nearly the 
whole of his, with the reserve of two, or three, capital horses, 
and some few brood mares." — {Times, Sept. 8, 1797.) 

"A Mr. Marsion, of the Borough, has laid a bet of 2000 
guineas, that he will, in the course of the ensuing week, go 
into one of the great wheels of the water-works at London 
Bridge, while it is in its swiftest motion with an ebb-tide, stay 
there five minutes, and come out again with safety, though 
not without accident, in a different part from that in which he 
went in : and afterwards walk one mile within an hour, on 
condition that the lower bucket of the wheel is two feet dis- 
tance from the river bottom." — {Times, Sept. n, 1797.) 



1 86 Old Times. 

These water-wheels which were situated where Fish- 
mongers Hall now stands, were commenced in 1582, by 
a Dutchman, named Peter Moritz, or Morrice, with one 
wheel. Hatton, in his " New View of London," published 
in Queen Anne's time, says, " besides the old work 
erected by Mr. Morris, the New, placed in the 4th Arch 
of the Bridge, consists of 2 Wheels with 7 Engines, set 
up about the year 1702, so that there are in all 13 
engines. They are the contrivance of that great 
English Engineer Mr. Sorocold, whereby the Thames 
Water is raised from the N. end of the Bridge, to a very 
great altitude, hy which means, many parts of the City, 
&c, are served with the Thames Water." 



Old Times. 187 



THE THEATRE. 

Our forefathers were fond of the Theatre, and patronised 
it nightly. They were exacting as to the quality of the 
acting represented before them, and that very exigeance 
procured them what they wanted. 

In the years of which I treat, there were, in London, 
the following Theatres : — The King's (now Her Majesty's) 
•in the Haymarket — Drury Lane — Covent Garden — The 
Theatre Royal, Haymarket — Royalty Theatre, Wells 
Street, Goodman's Fields — Royal Circus, St. George's 
Fields — Sadler's Wells — The Royal Grove, and Amphi- 
theatre (Astley's) Westminster Bridge — afterwards 
Astley's Royal Saloon — and still later called, Astley's 
Amphitheatre of Arts. Whilst at the Lyceum in the 
Strand, there were Musical Entertainments, and a New 
Circus. 

It was an age of good actors, and, taking them hap- 
hazard, we have only to glance at the following names, 
to prove the assertion, were it needed. Suett, who drank 
himself to death in 1805. John Kemble, the best tragic 
actor since Garrick. From an education for the priest- 
hood, to performing with a strolling company, was a 
great leap — but his success was assured when, in 1783, 
he made his debut, at Drury Lane, as Hamlet. He 
retired from the stage in 18 17, and died in 1823. 
Baddelcy was not a first rate actor, and I but mention 
him because of his bequest of Cake, and Wine, to be 



1 88 Old Times. 

partaken of, annually, by the Company, in the Green room 
of Drury Lane, every Twelfth night. Quick was irresis- 
tibly comic — and none could see him act without laugh- 
ing. He lived to a good old age (acting up to 1813), 
above 83 — dying in the year 1831. 

Edmund Kcan was born in 1787, and went on the stage 
as soon as he could walk. — After his education at Eton, he 
went on the provincial boards — not playing in London, 
until 1 8 14, when he played Shylock, at Drury Lane. 
Died 1833. Macklin, "the Jew, that Shakespeare drew," 
acted until he was 90 — appearing, for the last time, on the 
occasion of his benefit, May 7, 1789. After he was dressed 
for Shylock, he went into the Green Room, and, seeing 
Mrs. Pope there, said "My dear, are you to play to-night?" 
" To be sure I am, Sir," she replied, " do you not see I 
am dressed for Portia ? " — " Ah ! very true ; I had for- 
gotten — but who is to play Shylock ! " They got his 
poor old feeble mind, at last, to grasp the situation, and 
he went on the stage — but, after two, or three, speeches, 
he was obliged to give it up, and had to ask the indul- 
gence of the audience, and beg of them to accept Mr. 
Ryder, as his substitute. He lived some years after- 
wards, till nth July 1797 — when he died, at the age of 98. 

Bannister began his theatrical career at the early age 
of 12. At his engagement at Drury Lane, in 1779, he 
played tragedy, but, after the death of Edwin, he supplied 
his place, and played Comedy. He died 8th Nov. 1836, 
aged 76. Incledon was the sweetest singer of his time, 
and made his debut at Covent Garden in 1790 — Died 
1826. Elliston first appeared in London, at the Hay- 
market in 1796. Although he was not a famous actor, 
he cannot be omitted from a list of theatrical celebrities. 
Then, too, among the lesser stars, were Barrymore, Ryder, 




/he //icarre. 



Old Times. 189 

Johnstone, Pope, Hohnan and Munden — not even forget- 
ting Delpini the famous Clown, and Scaramouch. 

Among the chief actresses, was Mrs. Jordan, whose 
real name was Dorothy Bland, who became a decided 
favourite, with a London audience, at her first appear- 
ance at Drury Lane, in 1785. Her connection with the 
Duke of Clarence, afterwards William 4th, is well known. 
They lived very happily together, and had ten Children, 
but the connection was broken off in 181 1 — and she was 
left to shift for herself. She died in 18 16. 

The name of Sarah Siddons is too well known to 
elicit any remark ; as a tragedian, her equal has, pro- 
bably, never been seen on an English Stage. She had a 
long career — from her debut, at Drury Lane, in 1775, 
till her last appearance, in London, in 18 16. Died 
1 83 1 — aged J 6. 

Miss Farren, was a most lady-like, and elegant actress. 
She was tall and slim, and was caricatured as being 
positively scraggy — but she captivated the then Lord 
Derby, who, in physique was her complete antithesis, 
having short legs, a very corpulent body, and a hydro- 
cephalus head. She retired from the stage before 
her marriage, in 1796. 

Mrs. Crouch, and Mrs. Billington, the rival songstresses, 
were actresses, but they generally had parts assigned 
them, in which they could exercise their vocal powers, 
and they sang at Oratorios, and Concerts. Mrs. Billing- 
ton did not retire from her profession until 1800. She 
died in 18 17. 

Mrs. Frances Abington first appeared before a London 
audience on 21st Aug. 1755, and played, with few inter- 
missions, until 1798. After Mrs. Clive, she was the 
best comic actress on the English stage, and could equally 



190 Old Times. 

play Lady Teazle, Lady Betty Modish, a Chambermaid, 
a Romp, or a Country girl — Died, 18 15. 

Mrs. Bellamy, can just claim a notice, because she died 
in 1788, but she left the stage in 1785. She was a tragic 
actress, and was reckoned equal to Mrs. Cibber. 

Chief among the next rank of actresses, we must place 
Miss Brunton, Mrs. Martyr, and Mrs. Pope. 

Thinking it would interest my readers, I have taken 
some portraits of the chief Actors, and Actresses, of the 
time, from a very rare book, and they are interesting to 
the present generation, as shewing the Costumes in 
which the plays were acted, and, which, I suppose, 
satisfied the aesthetic, and archaeological, taste of our 
grandfathers. 

Both audience, and press, were very outspoken in 
their criticisms, and, indeed, in those days, dramatic 
criticism was real, and had not been reduced to a fine 
art, as now. Take the following instance : — 

"Theatre, Covent Garden. Hoadley's agreeable Comedy 
of The Suspicious Husband, was, last night, in general, presented 
here with spirit, and attended by a considerable audience. 
The Character of most prominent merit, as to performance, 
was Strickland, which Farren supported with strong emotion, 
and probable impression. Mrs. Abington would have repre- 
sented Clarinda with more effect, if she had not directed all 
her share of the dialogue entirely to the audience. Pope was 
the Frankly, but he must take great pains before he will acquire 
the ease necessary for genteel Comedy. Lewis's Ranger was 
not sufficiently marked by the appearance of that airy dis- 
sipation which the part demands. Mrs. Wells' Jacintha was 
only distinguished for rustic dialect, and awkward deport- 
ment.^ Mrs. Bernard had the merit of being decent in Mrs. 
Strickland." — {The Morning Post, Jan. 3, 1788.) 

The Theatre, was, then, as now, a passion with 



t^- 





* 



Old Times. 191 

some people, and amateur theatricals were in high 
favour. 

"At the Blenheim Theatre, her Grace the Duchess of 
Marlborough attended her guests in person, and superintended 
the refreshments of Sandwiches, fruit and wines, which were 
distributed in profusion." — {Morning Post, Mar. 28, 1788.) 

The Newspapers gave Theatrical Gossip — as the 
following, all from the Morning Post, Jan. 15, 1789, 
shews : — 

"It has lately been a practice with one, or two, of the 
female performers at Drury Lane Theatre, to refuse appearing 
on the stage, though much after the time of commencing the 
play, because the boxes may not happen to be filled with 
fashionable visitors, regardless of any disapprobation which 
may arise from the impatience of the audience. 

"When the New Theatre is erected for the Managers of 
Old Drury, it is in contemplation to fix a Clock over the 
Stage, where the inscription is now placed, that, if the per- 
formance should be improperly delayed, and the audience 
become clamorous, the Public may be informed to whom the 
blame should be applied." 

" A whimsical incident happened the other night, at the 
reading of Cumberland's new Comedy. The Author, who 
read the piece himself, began with the Dramatis Persona?, 
thus, ' The Impostor, by Mr. Palmer : ' A laugh occurring at 
this, the Author became embarrassed on seeing Mr. Palmer 
in the room, but, recovering himself, he added, 'being his 
first appearance in that character.' " 

" Mrs. Jordan and Kemble, according to Green Room 
report, are not upon the most amicable footing. It is supposed 
that the lady takes advantages of her popularity to be ill when 
she pleases, and has refused to perform in a farce when Mrs. 
Siddons appears in the play, and for this modest reason, ( that 
she will not fill the house, and let Mrs. Siddons run away with 
the reputation of it.'" — (Morning Post, Mar. 10, 1789.) 



192 Old Times. 

We come across a curious glimpse of Mrs. Robinson 
— the " Perdita/' (deserted by her " Florizel,") in the 
Morning Post ', March 11, 1789. 

" Perdita, the once beautiful Perdita, parades, every day, 
along Pall Mall, in her carriage, from which she frequently 

' Casts a longing ling'ring look,' 

in hopes that her charms, which, formerly, commanded the 
grave and the gay, may revive an attachment long since extin- 
guished. This unhappy beauty had better try Hyde Park, if 
she must have a little morning air — such a daily excursion 
would be more serviceable to her health, than an anxious 
ride through Pall Mall, can be gratifying to her pride." 

Theatrical Salaries were not very high — for, teste, the 
Morning Post, of March 13, 1789: — 

" It is said that Mrs. Jordan has but Six Pounds a week. 
Who will venture to say, that, considering the present attrac- 
tion of her talent, this is an adequate recompense ? " 

The Morning Post, Oct. 27, 1798, has the following two 
paragraphs as to behaviour at the theatres : — 

" Two men in the pit at Drury Lane Theatre, last night, 
were so turbulent, and riotous, during the last act of Henry 
the Fifth, that the performance was interrupted upwards of a 
quarter of an hour. The audience, at last, asserted their 
power, and turned them disgracefully out of the Theatre. 
This should always be done to crush the race of disgusting 
puppies that are a constant nuisance at the playhouse every 
night." 

" A box lobby puppy having insulted a gentleman at Covent 
Garden Theatre, on Friday night, received a very suitable 
drubbing. When this necessary chastisement was completed, 
the beater demanded satisfaction. ' Have I not thrashed you 
to your heart's content ? ' said the gentleman. The other 




I 
I 







Old Times. 193 

replied, with great simplicity, ' Sir, that is no satisfaction 
tome.'" 

Fancy our modern Royal Family, on their visits to 
the Theatre— -joining heartily in the choruses, and witness- 
ing slang dances : yet so it was in 1793. 

"The very pleasant Comedy of Notoriety was, yesterday 
evening, performed before their Majesties, the three elder 
Princesses, and a very brilliant house. Some well-timed songs 
introduced into the pantomime of Harlequin's Museum, gave 
the audience an opportunity of testifying their loyalty to the 
King, and attachment to both her Majesty, and her family, 
who joined heartily in the choruses. We never saw them 
better entertained. But surely the Slang dance which is 
introduced might be very properly omitted : — it is too vulgar 
for so elegant, and well conducted, a theatre." — {Times, Feb. 
5> 1 793-) 

" The private boxes at the Haymarket Theatre are so thinly 
partitioned, that we are surprised any person should deem them 
proper places to recapitulate domestic bickerings." — {Times, Feb. 
6, I793-) 

The following is apropos of Mrs. Jordan : — 

" Performers at the Theatres are now paid more liberally 
than heretofore. We are sorry when their public conduct gives 
reason for complaint. As the frequenters of them are their 
support, it will ever be necessary, in the public, to bring them 
to a proper sense of their situation. It is only by this means 
the conductors of our entertainments can have any sway over 
them." — (Times, Mar. 10, 1793.) 

" Brandenburgh House Theatricals. 

" The opening of the New Theatre, belonging to the 
Margrave of Anspach's Villa, at Hammersmith, took place on 
Thursday evening, with an entertainment the most costly, 

N 



194 Old Times. 

and at the same time, the most tasty, and elegant, we ever 
remember to have witnessed. The Prince of Wales, who 
was present, declared he had never seen anything more 
splendid, and handsomely conducted. The Theatre is built 
at a short distance from the house, between which there is a 
communication by means of a colonnade. The outside appear- 
ance rather resembles an old Gothic building, than a Temple 
devoted to the Muses. The inside is prettily fitted up, but 
the ceiling is too low for the size of it. 

" The performance opened by a prelude : after which a little 
piece was represented, entitled Fanfan and Colas, the 
characters by the Margravine, young Keppel Craven, 
Mons. and Medame Texier, and Count d'Alet, Lord High 
Chamberlain of the Household. The third petite piece was a 
very humorous dialogue called Le Poulet, between Mrs. 
Hobart, as an English servant maid, and Mons. Le Texier, 
as a French Valet. Both were inquisitive after news : the one 
told all the chit chat of the town in her English dialect : the 
other told the great exploits going forward in France, in 
French. Mrs. Hobart played her part to admiration, and 
very aptly introduced, among other things, the story of her 
own public Fete, last summer, at Ham, where the torrents of 
rain poured down, in such abundance, as to turn all her fine 
creams into poor milk and water. 

"The supper, after the play, was magnificent in the 
extreme, and consisted of a profusion of all the delicacies of 
the season. Besides Soups, and every dainty meat, there were 
pine apples, new grapes, cherries, strawberries, &c. 

"After the supper, there was a Masquerade, and Ball, 
which was quite unexpected to the Company. The Margravine 
had provided new dresses for all the company, and the Ladies, 
and Gentlemen, each dressed in separate rooms. The Duke 
of Clarence changed his dress seven different times, and 
greatly added to the hilarity of the entertainment. The 
Prince was in a domino." — {Times, April 27, 1793.) 

" It having been observed, in some public prints, that the 
Hon. Mrs. Twisleton was the first female of fashion who had 




^ 

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"I 










* 







Co 




Old Times, 195 

made the stage her profession, it is but justice to notice, that 
Mrs. Holman (the ci-devant Mrs. Hughes) who made her 
debut in Dublin, some years since, has a priority to public 
notice on this account : if real rank by birth, education, and 
fortune, give a title to distinction, if admission to the first 
orders of fashionable society have pretensions, the friends of 
that Lady have certainly a right to enter her claims on this 
subject." — {Tunes, Feb. 13, 1794.) 

OPENING OF NEW DRURY. 

"Public curiosity, which has long been on the tip-toe of 
expectation, was yesterday gratified by the opening of this 
superb edifice, under the immediate management of Mr. 
Kemble, whose approved talents well entitle him to so flatter- 
ing a mark of distinction. Of this Theatre, language must be 
inadequate to give even a faint idea of the effect it produces 
on the spectator, at his entre : nor does the first impression in 
the least diminish from a more minute examination into its 
structure, and decorations : the whole forming a happy com- 
bination of the gay, and the grand. The Stage, fitted as it was 
for an Oratorio, presented a nouvelle, and pleasing, prospect. 
The representation of a Gothic Cathedral, with the 'Long 
sounding Isle,' and 

' Storied windows richly dight 
Casting a dim religious light,' 

was admirably adapted to suit with the solemnity appertaining 
to sacred selections. 

" From the opening of the doors, to the first crash of the 
band, most able in all its movements, the satisfaction and 
delight of the audience was expressed by repeated, and 
increasing, plaudits — encouraged not a little by the care, and 
attention, evinced by the Proprietors, for the convenience of 
the public, in the approaches to the House — in every respect 
answering to the magnificence, and accommodation, within. 
Independent of the attraction, long, very long, to be expected 
from the novelty, as well as beauty, of the New Drury, some 



196 Old Times. 

credit ought to be given to that which must ever have its 
weight with the people at large, as well as amateurs — a 
numerous, and well appointed, set of vocal performers. The 
names of Harrison, Storace, Kelly, Crouch, and Dignum, 
are too proverbial for excellence in their several lines, to need 
our eulogium. Miss Leake, whose unaffected correctness of 
style, and melody of tone, must shortly place her deservedly 
high in her profession, may also be deemed almost as powerful 
an acquisition as Miss Parke, at the other House. Mr. 
Meredith, from Liverpool, possesses a fine deep volume of 
voice, which he exerted to great advantage. This Gentleman, 
we recollect some years since at Ranelagh, and, if we are not 
very much mistaken, at the Little Theatre, as the Prodigal 
Son of Dr. Arnold's charming Oratorio. 

" Giornovici's Concerto would have gone off much better, 
had the subject not been so tedious. This is a fault we have 
too often cause to find with Concerto Performers, who fre- 
quently give us too much of a good thing. His mode of 
introduction was particularly awkward — some other might be 
contrived than pitching him upon a plank, brought in at the 
hazard of discomfiting the head dresses, or breaking the noses 
of the ladies in the Orchestra. 

" The sound was rather too redundant, in general, and the 
language of the Gods, now and then, too plainly heard in the 
pit ; but, as it arises merely from the freshness of the building, 
this inconvenience will gradually be amended. 

" The Prince of Wales was with Mrs. Fitzherbert, and 
Mr. Sheridan, in the box appropriated to his Royal High- 
ness. Lord Thurlow sat, apparently well pleased, in the box 
beneath. Mr. and Mrs. Kemble, Mrs. Siddons, and Sir 
Francis Bourgeois, saw that all was well, in one of the 
orchestra boxes. 

" From the frequent encores, the Selection was not over till 
a late hour. The usual cry of ' take care of your pockets ' on 
quitting the Theatre, was superfluous : for Townsend attended 
to keep a ' wary eye ; ' so the pickpockets, of course, found it 
impracticable to make any 'palpable hits.'" — (Times, March 
13- T 794) 





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" Miss Farren has left London for Dublin where she is to 
perform 12 nights. The terms of her engagement, are ^500, 
and a clear benefit. It is not true that she takes Derby in her 
route." — {Times, June 26, 1794-) 

" The high demands made by some Actresses on the 
Management of Theatres, are so exorbitant, that we trust they 
will not be complied with. Mrs. Jordan, and Storace, have 
demanded, the first, ^£30, and the latter, ^£"20, a night. Much 
as we admire the abilities of each on the stage, yet we know, 
from experience, that the higher the salaries of some performers 
are, the more they are prone to disrespect the public, and to 
give themselves insufferable airs." — (Times, Oct. 4, 1794.) 

Storace has come down to the terms of her last engagement, 
and they are adequate to her abilities. The ci-devant Princess 
of Petersham still holds out : but it is thought that want of 
ammunition will occasion her soon to capitulate. When the 
theatre was opened in Goodman's fields a first rate actress 
thought herself amply paid with forty shillings per week : but, 
now, a first rate actress has the conscience to demand forty 
pounds Per night." — (Times, Oct. 9, 1794.) 

" Mrs. Jordan has at last condescended to descend to her 
former situation in the Theatre, at her former salary." — (Times, 
Oct. 18, 1794.) 

" The popular Dramatist, in his rage for hunting down the 
follies of the day, we hope will not forget to be in at the death 
of our masculine women of fashion. Their hunting, shooting, 
driving, cricketing, faroing, and skating, present a monstrous 
chaos of absurdity, not only making day, and night, hideous, 
but the sex itself equivocal. Lady men, or men ladies, ' you'll 
say 'tis Persian, but let it be changed.'" — (Times, Oct. 18, 
*794-) 

" Much has been said upon the Bath Fracas, but the cir- 
cumstance has never yet been explained. It is briefly this : 



198 Old Times. 

The Hon. Mrs. Twisleton was at the Ball-room, and stood up 
to dance : she stickled a little for precedence as an Honorable: 
the Master of the Ceremonies began to object to her dancing at 
all, as a Public Performer. Her partner instanced a Performer, 
M. Yanievitz, who was in the constant habit of appearing 
there. The Master of the Ceremonies went up to this amiable, 
and distinguished, foreigner, and intimated that his appearance 
there was thought too frequent, by the Subscribers. Mr. 
Yanievitz, demanded who had given the Master of Cere- 
monies this intimation : a satisfaction which was refused. 
Next morning Mr. Yanievitz wrote a proper letter to the M. 
C. expressive of his sentiments upon this occasion. 

" A meeting of subscribers was called, and they resolved, 
that, in future, no Public Performer, of any description, 
should be permitted to appear in any of the Public rooms." — 
{Times, March 4, 1795.) 

" Annual tickets, and orders are accompanied with a very 
great inconvenience : the side boxes are filled, at present, with 
butlers, and valets- de-chambre.' It is not that these persons 
conduct themselves amiss, but they deter gentlemen from 
entering, whose appearance might prove distressing to them." 
— {Times, Sept. 26, 1795.) 

" On an information being likely to be made against many 
of the performers in both Theatres, on the Act against profane 
cursing, and swearing — it became a question, as the Act is a 
discriminating one, whether they swore as gentlemen : when it 
was decided that they should be treated according to the 
Character they personified." — {Times, Dec. 17, 1795.) 

" The Theatres were shut on Saturday evening, to com- 
memorate, with the greater solemnity, the Martyrdom of King 
Charles." — {Times, Feb. 1, 1796.) 

Drury Lane Theatre has not experienced a riot so wild, and 
unappeasable, as that of Tuesday evening, since the Blacka- 
moor Washed White, of famous memory. The Entertainments 










* 




<0 






Old Times. 199 

advertised for the night's amusements were three. The Smugglers, 
having nothing contraband on board, was not only suffered 
to pass, but was hailed with three cheers : — The Virgin Un- 
masked had her admirers — but the Deserter was mauled most 
dreadfully — for Young Welsh had permitted a new Skirmish 
to make his debut, as Suett phrased it : and, being a miserable 
wretch, when the audience expressed a disapprobation, the 
Performers, to shorten the ridicule, shortened the scenes, 
which on such occasions, is usual, and prudent — but, the cur- 
tain dropping at ten minutes past ten, created a violent burst 
of indignation. Kelly first attempted to enquire the wishes 
of John Bull, and expressed himself, in the name of the 
Performers, ignorant of how he was disobliged. All striving to 
be heard, none, of course, could be so, and he retired. Uproar 
still increased, and, after near half an hour of this din, Suett 
made his appearance, and apologised for the badness of the 
stage struck hero, but he was soon given to understand, that 
that was not the cause of the Row, but that the audience 
expected to have the " Deserter " played wholly over again. 
Mr. S., after " looking as queer as a quartern of soap after a 
week's wash," expressed his concern that many of the 
Performers were gone, and the stage lights out, but this was 
the, cause of fresh howlings, and as somebody cried out, ' God 
save the King,' he promised to send as many of the Orchestra, 
as could be found. In five minutes this popular hymn was 
received with acclamation. The curtain drew up, and all the 
Performers in the Theatre sung it. The curtain again dropt 
amid violent tumults which continued, and increased. Again 
Mr. Suett appeared, and declared ' how much hurt the Pro- 
prietors were at any part of the Performance being omitted : 
that it was without their concurrence, or even knowledge, and 
that such a circumstance should never happen again.' This 
rather mollified the audience, and many dispersed at a quarter 
past 1 1. Almost the whole of the lights in the house had been 
long extinguished : and some of the benches were torn up." — 
— {Times, May 13, 1796.) 

" On Thursday last a ludicrous fracas took place in one of 



200 Old Times. 

the boxes of the first circle, at Drury Lane Theatre. A 
gentleman, finding himself much incommoded by the heat, 
had recourse to his smelling-bottle. One of the fighting lobby 
loungers, who stood close to him, took offence at the scent, 
and desired him to put it up. The demand not being obeyed, 
an altercation ensued, which ended with the customary etiquette 
of BoabdiTs presenting his card, and desiring his antagonist's, 
in return. The card was accepted, but the only notice taken 
of it, was a formal offer of the smelling-bottle. This retort 
completely disconcerted the would-be Duellist, who found 
himself so unexpectedly taken by the nose, and the affair con- 
cluded with a general laugh at the impertinence of the 
offender." — (Times, Oct. 7, 1797.) 

"The indecent behaviour of the Box-lobby loungers, be- 
comes, every day, more disorderly, and offensive. Two of 
this contemptible class, who frequent the Theatre, merely to 
interrupt the performance, and disturb the audience, quarrelled, 
on Tuesday night, at Drury-Lane house, and, regardless of 
every kind of decorum, stripped in the lobby, and decided 
their dispute a la Mendoza. We trust that the timely inter- 
ference of peace officers will prevent, for the future, a conduct 
so degrading to society, and so reproachful to public manners." 
—{Tunes, Oct 18, 1798.) 



Cant phrases, and catch words, have been in use on 
the stage for many years, Paul Bedford's sonorous 
" I believe you my Bo-o-o-o-y," and Lionel Brough's 
" That's the sort of man I am," being illustrations of the 
fact. Something like these, tickles the fancy of the 
audience, and, in very little time, the phrase is all over 
the town, and in everybody's mouth. 

" Knight's cant phrase of ' That accounts for it,' is pleasantly 
made use of in the new Farce at Covent Garden. Bond St. 
Bobbies have, all, their different cant phrases, indeed, they 







^ 




c 



cb 



\ 



Old Times. 201 

must say something, and have no other talents for conversa- 
tion, so 'that accounts for it.'" — (Times, Dec. 5, 1798.) 



" Cant Phrases. 

"Our Dramatic Authors have lately amused themselves, 
and the Public, with cant phrases, instead of character, ' That's 
your fort ' — 'Keep moving' — &c. Young Dibdin, in his Jew and 
Doctor, seems to have hit upon the happiest cant, imaginable ; 
' That accounts for it,' which seems applicable in almost all 
cases. 

" There is no opposition to Government, in the House of 
Commons — for a change of Ministry would ruin the country 
— that accounts for it. 

"A very great Personage pays no regard to Lovers' Vows: 
he has been disgusted with a German translation — that 
accounts for it. 

" Buonaparte wishes to return to Paris, though he should go 
thither as naked as the back of his hand ; he prefers soup- 
maigre to water melons — that accounts for it. 

" Women complain of the want of Gallantry in men, though 
the modern dress shows more than enough to excite passion, 
but — that accounts for it. 

"This cant phrase would comprehend all the science of 
Logic, if properly used, and appropriately designed. It might 
be amplified, in the present instance, to any length of space, 
but exemplification breaks off because ?ie quid nimis — that 
accounts for it '." — (Times, Dec. 14, 1798.) 

" The mania of private acting, rages with more fury than 
ever. There are, at present, no less than six Private Theatres, 
in the Cities of Westminster, and London. This is a kind 
of amusement which, on the ground of morality, should be 
( more honoured in the breach than the observance,' and calls 
for the interference of the Magistracy." — (Times, Dec. 26, 
1798.) 

" During the representation of the play of. Macbeth, at a 



202 Old Times. 

Provincial Theatre, some nights since, an incident occurred, 
which totally disconcerted all the gravity of the Tragic Muse. 
In the Banquet Scene, Banquets murderer was, by some 
untoward accident, missing, and the business of the drama 
was threatened with suspension, when in the exigency of the 
moment, an ignorant candle-snuffer was pushed forward to 
tell the horrible tale : — on seeing him, Macbeth, who had 
been motionless with confusion, and embarrassment, burst 
from his state of torpor, and exclaimed, ' There's blood upon 
thy face!' 'Is there by G — ,' cried the astonished clown, 
and clapping his hands to his cheek, with a mixture of anger, 
and alarm, continued, ' Then that domn'd blunt razor has 
cutten me agen.' " — {Times, Jan. 7, 1799.) 



A notice of the Stage, of this time, would be incomplete, 
if Ireland's impudent forgery of " Vortigern and Rowena," 
were not mentioned. It was supposed to be an undis- 
covered play of Shakespeare's, and, with many other 
Shakespearean forgeries, was fabricated by W. H. Ireland, 
who is classed as follows : — 

" Four forgers born in one prolific age, 
Much critical acumen did engage : 
The first 1 was soon, by doughty Douglas, scar'd, 
Tho' Johnson would have screen'd him, had he dar'd. 
The next had all the cunning of a Scot ; 2 
The third, invention, genius, — may, what not ? 3 
Fraud, now exhausted, only could dispense 
To her fourth son, their threefold impudence." 

Sheridan believed in the play, and engaged with 
Samuel Ireland, the father of the forger, to pay down 
£300, and half the profits of the first 60 nights. It was 

1 Win. Lauder who tried to make Milton out a plagiarist, — but his 
quotations from various Latin authors were proved to be false. 

2 James Macpherson, for his Ossian. 3 Chatterton. 











I 



Old Times. 203 

produced at Drury Lane Theatre, on 2 Ap. 1796, 
Kemble, playing Vortigern. He was an unbeliver in the 
authenticity of the MS., and, certainly, did not attempt 
to uphold it by his acting. In fact he burst the bubble, 
altogether, in the fifth Act, by emphasising, with much 
meaning, the words, " And when this solemn mockery 
is o'er," that the audience caught at it, and, amidst a 
chorus of yells, and hisses, the play was utterly con- 
demned. W. H. Ireland soon afterwards confessed all 
his forgeries. 



204 Old Times. 



OPERA AND BALLET. 

If there were good Actors, in those days, there were 
also good singers, traditions of whom have lasted until 
our time. Of course, they were fewer than the Actors, 
because there was but one Opera — and the operas, then in 
vogue, required but a very limited number of artists. 

Still, the names of several of the prime donne are yet 
remembered, and the names of Mara, Storace, and Crouch 
will always live in the annals of song. 

Elizabeth Mara, whose maiden name was Schmelling, 
was born at Cassel in 1750. She commenced her 
musical education by playing on the violin, but, sub- 
sequently, finding she had a good voice, she devoted 
herself to its cultivation, and so far succeeded, as even 
to earn unqualified approbation, and applause, from 
Frederick the Great — who was, as a rule, absolutely 
indifferent to Music. She first came to England, in 
1784, and chiefly resided here till 1802; when she 
retired to Moscow, where she had property, which, how- 
ever, was destroyed at the French Invasion, and de- 
struction of the city, in 1812, and she was reduced to 
poverty. She then went to reside at Revel, where her 
old friends kindly helped to support her. She came 
once more to London, in 18 19, and gave a Concert — but 
her voice was gone, and this was her last effort. She 
went back to Revel, where she died, in 1833, aged 84. 




1 







^ 




The (JJehratzd/Wadtmoisd/t G— m— rd t 
or Grimhdrb from Paris. 



Old Times. 205 

Anne, Selina Storace) was born in England, and was 
sister of the celebrated Composer. She was an excellent 
actress, a beautiful singer, and was universally popular. 
She died in 18 14. 

Of Mrs. Crouch, nee Phillips, 1 have already written, 
slightly, as an Actress. She was born in 1763, and 
went early on the stage, making her debut, at Drury 
Lane, in the play of "The Lord of the Manor," in 1780, 
so that she was but 17. In 1784, she went to Ireland, 
where her admirers were numerous, and some most 
passionate. One young man, whose affection she did 
not return, declared he would shoot both her, and himself 
— and went to the theatre, ostensibly to carry out his 
threat, but he was ejected from the building, and, 
ultimately, left the country. 

But there was, about this time, a very romantic episode 
in her life. She was loved by a young man, heir to a 
title, and fortune, and she returned his love. Naturally, 
under the circumstances, his family had higher matri- 
monial aims for him, so the young people had no 
other course open to them, than a clandestine Marriage. 
They were even before the Altar, of a Roman Catholic 
Chapel, but the priest refused to marry them, on hearing 
the name of the bridegroom, unless he had his father's 
consent. No priest could be found to marry them, for 
the lover was under age, so the love lorn couple 
eloped, hoping, at some seaside port to find a ship for 
Scotland. They were followed by both irate fathers, 
Mr. Phillips having informed the other. The lovers were 
separated, but history is silent as to whether they ever 
met again. 

After she got over this disappointment, which took 
some time, she married Lieutenant Crouch of the Navy, 



206 Old Times. 

— good looking, but dissipated, and spendthrift. — Of 
course the marriage was not a happy one, and they 
parted : 

Her voice was exquisitely sweet, and she was a most 
graceful actress. She kept her hold on the public, and 
was on the stage until a short time before her death, 
in 1805. 

The names of Incledon, and Braham, have only to be 
mentioned, to recall their vocal triumphs. 

Benjamin Charles Incledon, was the son of a surgeon 
— and was born at St. Keveran, in Cornwall, in 1764. 
He made his first appearance, in London, in 1790 — 
when he played in " The poor Soldier." He, at once, 
became a public favourite, and so continued until his 
retirement from the stage, which was some time before 
his death, in 1826. His acting was clumsy, and un- 
graceful, but his sweet voice rendered him unequalled 
in ballad singing, which was his especial forte. 

John Braham, (or more correctly Abraham,} was born 
of Jewish parents, in London, a.d. 1774. Early left 
an orphan, he was brought up by Leoni, a celebrated 
Italian Singer, and so well taught by him, was he, that 
he came out, as a public vocalist, before he was eleven 
years old, when he sang bravura songs, which had been 
written for Madame Mara. After singing, both in 
English, and Italian, Opera, he went to Italy — and, after 
his return, he appeared at Covent Garden, in 1801. He 
died in 1856. 

Michael Kelly was both composer, and singer, but he 
cannot take rank with either Incledon, or Braham. He 
made his first appearance on the stage of the Metropolis, 
at Drury Lane, in 1787. He composed elegant, and 
pretty, airs, and he sang nicely, but many of his com- 




& 



r 






Old Times. 207 

positions are said to have had their origin in Italian, and 
German, sources. This gave rise to a don mot of 
Sheridan's, when he heard that Kelly had turned wine 
merchant — he suggested that, over his door, should be 
painted, " Michael Kelly, composer of wine, and importer 
of music." Died 1826. 

Far more eminent than he, as composers, were Arnold, 
Shield, Storace, Linley, and Jackson. 

Samuel Arnold, Mus. Doc, was born in 1740 — and 
had the advantage of studying music under Nares. He 
was, during his lifetime, both organist to the King, and 
to Westminster Abbey, wrote several Oratorios, and 
published selections of sacred music — but it is as a com- 
poser for the theatre, that we have to consider him. 
When only twenty-three years of age, he was appointed 
composer to Covent Garden Theatre, and his earliest 
operas were there produced. In 1776, he filled the 
same position with regard to the Haymarket, and this 
versatile genius composed Operas, and Oratorios, until 
his death in 1802. 

William Shield (born in 1754) carved his own way 
up to the eminence, which he enjoyed, in his profession. 
Apprenticed to a boatbuilder, he gave up that business, 
as soon as he was out of his time : and, being musical, 
and, playing well on the violin, he soon obtained a situa- 
tion at Scarborough, as leader of Concerts there, and 
gained such a reputation, that he was offered, and 
accepted, the position of first Viola, at the Italian Opera 
House. His first theatrical work was composing the 
Music, (in 1778), to "The Flitch of Bacon." He wrote 
the music for many other plays — and, on the death of 
Sir W. Parsons, he gained the appointment of " Master of 
his Majesty's Musicians in ordinary." He died in 1829. 



208 Old Times. 

In spite of his foreign name, Stephen Storace, was 
born in England, although of Italian parentage. He was 
early sent to Italy, and studied at the Conservatorio of 
St. Onophris, at Naples, in 1787, being then 24 years 
of age. He returned to England, and, soon afterwards, 
was appointed Composer to Drury Lane ; and, up to his 
death, in 1796, he was actively engaged on Operas, &c. 

Thomas Linley received his musical education from 
Chilcott, the organist at Bath. One of his daughters, 
Eliza, married Sheridan, and, soon after the production 
of his first theatrical essay, "The Duenna," he became 
joint patentee, with his son-in-law, in Drury Lane 
Theatre, and, leaving Bath, went to reside in London. 
There, he wrote for the Stage, and composed many 
operas, besides songs, madrigals, &c. He received a 
severe shock, when his son was drowned, in 1778 — and, 
although he lived till 1795, he never recovered from it. 

William Jackson (whose Te Deum is, or was, such 
a favourite), was born, at Exeter, in 1730, and was 
afterwards Organist to the Cathedral of that city. He 
did not write much for the Stage, preferring sacred 
music, songs, and canzonets. 

The following paragraph shows a curious state of 
things at the Opera : — 

" When the Gallery at the Opera House, on Saturday night, 
expressed its disapprobation of the crowded stage, Sir John 
Gallini ! ! ! x who was part of that crowd, very modestly declared, 
that, unless the gentlemen behind the scenes left the House, 
there would be no Opera. — But, upon being asked where the 
half guineas should remain, if the gentlemen retired, this shark 
for words recanted his former assertion, and, very composedly, 
swallowed the gilded pill." — (Morning Post, Apr. 10, 1788.) 

1 Sir John Gallini, was connected with the Theatre. It was to him that 
" The Monster," was sent to learn dancing. 



Old Times. 209 

The same paper (15 Ap. 1788) in its Notice "to 
Correspondents " rather injures him with its forbearance. 
" The various articles sent to this paper against Mr. 
Gallini, previous to his Benefit, we have uniformly 
refused to insert, being unwilling to injure a poor man, 
at so important a period." 

" How we are ruined ! Bruni, the new singer, has 1400 
guineas, Mara 1000, and a benefit, and Millerd, 1000 for the 
present Opera season." — {Times, Fcbr. 16, 1793.) 

" Haymarket Opera. Almost all the subscribers, in Town, 
graced the Boxes, with the Prince of Wales, and Duke of 
Clarence, at the head of the list. The Pit had some pretty, 
as well as well dressed, women ; but we were sorry to observe 
several of the gentlemen in round hats, and many of them 
slovenly to a degree, descending even to boots. This ought 
not to be permitted." — {Times, Jan. 13, 1794.) 

OPERA. 

" II Capriccio Dramatico, considerably curtailed, on 
Saturday, again introduced Signora Negri, and her reception 
was again most flatteringly favorable. The Burletta has to 
boast some very beautiful music, and the Finale in particular 
is much indebted to the exertions of the performers. So far, 
all was peace, and harmony. Would we could say the same 
of Don Giovanni, whose reception was, throughout, dis- 
approved. So determined an opposition to this kind of 
entertainment we have never witnessed : and, indeed, some 
of the occurrences were so peculiarly striking, as to baffle all 
description. Several blows passed in the pit ; and one gentle- 
man, who was remarkably forward in having a slap at Don 
Juan, got a slap in the face from an enraged amateur, who, 
perhaps, would have been better employed in beating time. 
In short, till the fall of the curtain, Morelli's pretty Venetian 
Ballad, excepted, which gained an encore, all was noise and 
uproar ; and the scene of Hell, magnificent, and terrific, as 
it was, had so far the characteristic accompanyment of groans, 

o 



210 Old Times. 

not of the damned, but of those troubled spirits who wished 
to torment the Manager. 

" The Procession was totally omitted, and several other 
judicious alterations made, but, as the sense of the subscribers, 
as well as the public, seems decidedly against a repetition of 
this Opera, we have no doubt but the Manager will submit, 
respectfully, to their fiat — comforting himself with the reflec- 
tion, that his liberal exertions deserve — though it is not always 
in the power of mortals to command — success. 

" The Opposition to the new Opera of Don Giovanni, on 
Saturday night, is said to have been preconcerted : and it was 
known in the morning of that day that there was to be a riot. 
In one part of the Pit, the disturbance became so serious, 
that two Gentlemen called each other out, and agreed to meet, 
as yesterday morning. Sir W. H. was at the head of the 
opposition party. In justice to the Manager of the Opera, it 
should be recollected by those who are dissatisfied with the 
present company of performers, that the same unprecedented 
circumstances which prevented several Dancers from leaving 
France, also deterred several singers from coming from Italy, 
as they must pass through a part of France. This incon- 
venience is only of a temporary nature, and cannot be pre- 
vented. In the meantime, the subscribers, and the public, 
have the most magnificent, as well as the most commodious, 
theatre in Europe to resort to." — {Times, Mar. 10, 1794.) 

" Tweedle dum, and Tweedle twee — the Soprano, and Tenor, 
of the Italian Opera are objects equally important, no doubt, 
in the eye of the public. Instead of high notes they have gone 
to high words. Signor Tenor, not having taken the precaution 
to soap his nose, — Signor Soprano got fast hold, and gave it a 
musical shake, not perfectly in unison with the feelings of 
the tenor, who, now, if he wishes to sleep in a whole skin, 
will, no doubt, alter the tenor of his conduct!!" — [Tunes, 
Jan. 14, 1795.) 

" The Opera. — The Public are acquainted, that on Satur- 
day se'nnight there was a violent disturbance at the Opera 
House, in consequence of the Subscribers shewing great dis- 
satisfaction at the want of novelty in the Performances. The 




o 



^ 



Old Times. 211 

Manager, having understood that the greatest clamour came 
from the Boxes of the Countess Spencer, and Mr. Pole, Mr. 
Taylor (a few days since) sent a letter to her Ladyship, and 
Mr. Pole, saying, that as they were not satisfied with the 
Performances, he desired to return them their subscription 
money, which he did. The Subscribers have taken up this 
business, which they consider as a gross affront, and dis- 
respect, and yesterday there was a meeting of them at the 
Thatched House Tavern, the result of which we have not 
learnt. We are sorry that there should be any misunderstand- 
ing respecting an Entertainment, where harmony only ought 
to prevail : and, we are equally concerned, that the Manager 
should, so indiscreetly, send such a letter to Lady Spencer, 
who is the last person in the world who would be suspected 
of any impropriety of behaviour, for, a Lady of greater accom- 
plishments, and more unaffected manners, is not to be found 
in the whole circle of Nobility." 1 — (Times, Febr. 20j 1795.) 

" The excuse for the rows, in a certain box, at the Opera, 
is, that the Gentlemen come in tipsy. This is an excuse, 
(whether good, or bad, we will not determine) for the Gentle- 
men. But, as we take for granted the Ladies are not 
tipsy, pray what excuse is to be offered them?" — (Times, 
Dec. 26, 1796.) 

The Ballet does not receive so much attention in the 
public press, as the Opera — and, as far as I know, 
there are no means of getting at the biographies of the 
premieres dansenses. 

The first of note during this period is Mdlle. Guimard, 
who was then playing in the ballet of " Ninette." It 
is just possible that there may be a suspicion of carica- 
ture in the illustration. 

The Ballet was a special feature at the Pantheon 
Theatre (the site of which is now occupied by Messrs. 

1 Feb. 29. — A long Advertisement appeared in the form of an apology 
from Mr. Taylor to the Duke of Leeds, who presided at the Meeting of the 
Subscribers at the Thatched House. 



212 Old Times. 

W. & A. Gilbey of Oxford Street), which was built as 
a counter attraction to Carlisle House, then popularly 
conducted by Madame Cornelys, of whom more anon. 

" The Pas Trois, introduced into the Ballet at the Opera 
House on Tuesday night, for the first time, had a very pretty 
effect. It goes to the tune of ' God save the King,' and is 
intended as a compliment to his Majesty." — (Times, Feb. 
16, I793-) 

"Simonet, the dancer, and Grenier, who keeps the hotel 
in Jermyn Street, were, last week, ordered to depart the 
kingdom." 1 — (Times, March 26, 1793-) 

The centre figure in this illustration is M. Didelot — 
and the danseuse on the left, is Miss Rose, an English- 
woman, who was not bewitchingly handsome, though 
a good ballerina. The lady on the right is probably 
Mdlle. Parisot. 

"The OPERA. — The mania of expectation was, on Satur- 
day night, at the very acme of curiosity. The Pit was so 
crowded even before the drawing up of the curtain, that it 
was not possible to edge another face into the area. Stars, 
garters, feathers, and turbans, were so jumbled, and inter- 
mixed, at the doors, that all sex and identity were indis- 
tinguishable. The stage itself was crammed on all sides, 
and in such a manner, as to render the shifting of the scenery 
' a work of labour, and a service of danger.' So eager, 
indeed, was the desire of seeing Didelot and Rose, that 
the wings were crowded with Ladies. Amongst those Ladies 
who thus made their first appearance on the stage, we heard 
some very respectable, and titled names. 

" The new Ballet of Les Trois Sultanes taken from Marmontel 
Hillisberg, is the ' Cock-nosed English-woman? yet while we 
remember Abingdon and Jorda?i in Roxalana, with all the 
roguishness of language, mere action must appear dull, and 
unentertaining. It were injustice, to be sure, to decide what 
effect the Ballet might have produced, could it have been 

1 Probably for political reasons. 




& 






1 

3 



Old Times. 213 

fairly exhibited : but the stage was so very full, that figure 
dancers could scarce round a horse-shoe to trip in, and no 
performer could make an exit. Didelot and Rose appeared 
again in the Ballet, lugged in without character, merely to 
shew themselves. We hope that some Ballet will be got up 
wherein they may display the fulness of those powers, and 
talents, which the great world allow them to possess." — (Times, 
Feb. 22, 1796.) 

"The Stage at the Opera is so crowded, that Madame 
Rose, in throwing up her fine muscular arm into a graceful 
attitude, inadvertently levelled three men of the first quality 
at a stroke." — {Times, May 9, 1796.) 

Mdlle. Parisot. 

The length of Mdlle. Parisot's skirts would have 
delighted the Bishop of Durham (Shute Barrington), who 
was much exercised in his mind, in 1798, as to the 
brevity of those worn by the ladies of the ballet. He 
seems to have entered into a crusade against the ballet, 
before he made his memorable speech in the House of 
Lords, on 2nd March, 1798 — for the next illustration is 
dated January in that year. 

It was, however, on the occasion of the second reading 
of Esten's divorce bill, that the wrath of the Right 
Reverend Father in God, fairly boiled over, and the 
Times of 3rd March, reports him to have spoken thus. 
" He considered it a consequence of the gross immorali- 
ties, imported of late years, into this kingdom, from 
France ; the Directory of which country, finding that 
they were not able to subdue us by their arms, appeared 
as if they were determined to gain their ends by destroy- 
ing our morals. They had sent over persons to this 
country, who made the most indecent exhibitions on our 
Theatres ; exhibitions which would not have been allowed 



214 Qld Times. 

even in France ; and which, so far from being allowable 
in a Christian Country, Would have disgraced the ancient 
Theatres of Athens and Rome. 

" It was his intention to move, on some future day, that 
an Address be presented to his Majesty, beseeching him 
to order all such persons out of the Kingdom, as people 
who were likely to destroy our morality, and religion ; 
and who were very probably, in the pay of France." 

This tirade made him a fitting subject for the Cari- 
caturists, and they did not forget him. 

In a picture by Gillray, 14th Mar. 1798, " Operatical 
Reform, or La Danse a FEveque," we recognise Miss 
Rose, on the extreme right of the three ladies, who have 
little other covering for their bodie? but the episcopal 
apron and lawn sleeves. At the foot, is this verse — 

" 'Tis hard for such new-fangled orthodox rules, 
That our Opera troupe should be blamed ; 
Since, like our first Parents, they only (poor fools !) 
Danced naked, and were not ashamed." 

And there was yet another amusing Caricature of the 
Prelate, in connection with this subject. In July 1798* 
Gillray published a picture of " More short Petticoats, or 
the Highland Association under Episcopal Examination." 
The Bishop is accompanied by Lord Salisbury, the then 
Lord Chamberlain, and inspects the Kilts of three High- 
landers, who assure him " You'll find them exactly 
according to the rules of the Highland Association." 
But the Bishop's modesty is blushing violently, and he 
replies " Don't tell me of rules, I say it's abominable ! 
It's about half a foot too short according to the opera 
Standard. Bring the large breeches directly ; why, the 
figurantes would be ashamed of it." 




:clesiasf-ical Scrutiny,- or -the Durham tn quest on Duly- /'/ r J3 



Old Times. 215 



MASQUERADES, CONCERTS, &c. 

Masquerades were introduced into England by 
Henry 8th, but, perhaps, at no time were they so 
fashionable, as during the latter half of the 18th Cen- 
tury, although they do not always seem to have 
been successful. The Morning Post, Feb. 6, 1788* 
speaks of a Masquerade at the Opera House, thus : — 
" The Supper and Wines were consistent with the well 
known parsimonious principle of the conductor, the 
provision being very unequal to the appetite, and number, 
of the guests. The music was very indifferent." Thus 
we see that these amusements were not of equal quality, 
and the Critics did not fear to say what they thought 
of them." 

" Pantheon, Jan. 26, 1788. The Nobility and Gentry are 
respectfully acquainted that the First Masqued Ball, at this 
place, will be on Thursday next, the 31st Instant. There will 
be a Supper as usual, with Wines, &c. Tickets at One 
Guinea each may be had at the Office." — {Morning Post, 
Jan. 26, 1788.) 

This Masquerade seemed to be very popular. 

" The Prince's visit to the Brandenburgh-house Masquerade 
was to have been in female habiliments ; but the shortness of 
the notice did not allow time for preparing them, and neither 
the shoes, corsette, nor robe, of Mrs. Vanneck, for which his 
Royal Highness sent, could be made capacious enough for 



216 Old Times. 

a momentary covering. The sailor's habit was, therefore, 
adopted without any preparation for the character. The Mar- 
gravine's Masqued Ball produced many whimsical events, 
but none more than that from a character representing 
Acteon, who, in brandishing a huge pair of antlers, run full 
butt against a French looking-glass of 300 guineas value, and 
smashed it to pieces. The Margrave being near, endea- 
voured to give the accident a pleasant turn, by remarking in 
German 'that there could be no jollity where they let the 
glass stand.'" — {Times, March 1, 1794.) 

" The MASQUERADE. 

" The entertainment given by the Manager of the Opera 
House, on Monday night, was the best attended of any we 
have seen for many years, and fully answered the expectations 
that had been formed of it. The space allotted, however, 
large as it was, with the addition of the new room, and 
another above stairs, was by no means sufficient for so large 
a company : and the pressure of the crowd rendered the 
rooms insufferably hot, as well as prevented the masks from 
appearing to advantage. For so large an assembly, there 
were fewer masks than usual, but the hilarity of the company 
made amends for this deficiency. The Prince of Wales was 
in a black domino, arm-in-arm with Captain Churchill, and 
Lord George Conway ; the Duke of Clarence was the 
whole evening with Mrs. Jordan in a private box upstairs. 
Michael Angela Taylor was dressed in women's cloaths, but 
was less talkative than usual. The supper was extremely well 
conducted, and the provisions better than usual. The refresh- 
ments were also liberally supplied. There were about 2700 
persons in the rooms, and among them some of the prettiest 
women in town." — {Times, March 5, 1794.) 

"MASQUERADE AT THE OPERA HOUSE. 

"On Thursday night, for the first time this season, there 
was a grand masquerade at this House, which was very 
numerously attended, as every room was crowded, and the 



/ 






km.* f 



/tfadame (ornelys. 



Old Times. 217 

numbers computed at about 1600. A party of Bon-vivans, 
unmasked, came into the rooms about two o'clock, who had 
evidently made too free use of the juice of the grape. The 
primitive dress of one of them, who appeared to be a Quaker, 
did not quite accord with his manners, which were more prone 
to the flesh than the spirit. Although the new regulations in 
price is in favour of Masquerades, yet the freedom of conversa- 
tion which is allowed in these motley meetings, became, on 
this occasion, indecent ribaldry, and licentiousness. The low- 
ness of the price of admission was in a great measure the 
cause of introducing many low visitors, who made themselves 
obnoxious to delicacy, and good manners, by the coarsest 
language." — (Times, Feb. 17, 1798.) 

There is a paragraph in the Times of August 23, 
1797, whereby "hangs a tale" — 

"The miserable death of Mrs. Cornelys, in the Fleet Prison, 
adds another melancholy instance to the catalogue of vicissi- 
tudes in what is generally termed fashionable life. She was 
formerly the law-giver of the circles of dissipation, and gaiety, 
yet closed her existence in the hospital room of the prison, in 
which she had obtained permission to reside, by the kindness 
of the Warden." 

The history of Teresa Cornelys is very singular, show- 
ing how a nobody — for no one knows even from what 
part of Germany she came — could come here, and, by 
her business qualities, and tact, become a person abso- 
lutely indispensable to Society. All we know of her is 
that she was supposed to be a German, who had been a 
public singer, both in France, and Germany, and that 
she came over here about 1756 or 1757. Whether there 
was a Herr Cornelys alive, we have no knowledge — but 
she had a son, and daughter. That she was not bad 
looking, is evidenced by her portrait, which must have 
been taken in her declining years : that she must have 



2i8 Old Times. 

been shrewd, business-like, and possessed of much 
savoir /aire, is undeniable — for she held " Society " in 
her grasp, and, for a time, made it do just what she 
wanted. 

What she did for the first five, or six years, after her 
coming to England is not known, but she must have been 
possessed of some Capital, or she could not have taken, 
as she did, Carlisle House — a mansion in Soho Square. 
Here she started a sort of fashionable Social Club, called 
"The Society," either in 1762, or 1763, and this was its 
programme. " The subscription is seven guineas for 
twelve nights, one ticket each, which introduces only one 
person, whether gentleman, or lady ; but there are fre- 
quent subscriptions in the year, and two ladies may be 
admitted six nights on one subscription. No person 
can be admitted a Subscriber to this Society, but through 
the recommendation of a subscriber. Four ladies of 
quality, having each of them a book, have the joint 
management, direction, and choice, of the subscribers ; 
every one's name must be entered in one of those ladies' 
books. 

"A non-subscriber can only be admitted by a sub- 
scriber's ticket, writing his, or her name on the back ; in 
consequence of which rule, and to avoid the possibility 
of improper company, their names are, immediately after 
the night is over, printed, and hung up in the outer 
room. 

"The doors are opened, at 9 o'clock, of the lower rooms, 
which consist of six, each superior to the other ; few 
people, however, assemble before 10, and those who 
profess themselves of the genteelest order, not till eleven, 
when they walk about, and amuse themselves with 
accosting their acquaintance, and forming themselves 



Old Times. 219 

into select parties for the evening ; then regaling with 
jellies, syllabubs, cakes, orgeat, lemonade, fruits, &c, 
prepared in a kind of arched shelving all round the 
hangings of the tea room. 

" At ten, the upper flight of rooms open, which consist 
of two large rooms, besides a very large ball room, 
furnished, and hung, in the most superb taste, with an 
exceeding good band of music in an orchestra erected at 
the upper end, and rows of benches, down the sides, 
placed one above the other. In this room they dance 
country dances, but no minuets at all. 

" At half-past eleven, the company in general repair to 
tea, and have small round tables for their separate 
parties. 

" At twelve, the Cotillion gallery opens, with another 
range of seven rooms underground, which, from the vast 
variety of furniture and ornaments, the grandeur, and 
magnificence, of some, the elegant simplicity of others, 
together with the amazing beauty of the lights, one of 
the principal excellencies of the whole, form a view, on 
descending a perpendicular flight of stairs most sumptu- 
ously, and pleasingly, striking. 

" In these lower range of rooms, the company finish 
the evening, the young in dancing cotillions, the others in 
looking on ; for there are no cards, nor gaming, of any 
kind. At one, the company begin to separate, and con- 
tinue going till four, but the major part break up about 
two." 

By which set of rules we see that Madame Cornelys, 
started her establishment in the strictest propriety, what- 
ever became of it afterwards ; and these rules were 
strictly carried out. The rooms, on off nights, were 
used for other purposes ; for instance, she, knowing the 



220 Old Times. 

power of the class, gave a servants' ball ; and the Old 
Westminster scholars held their Anniversary Meeting in 
her rooms. 

Her prosperity excited envy, and many were the 
rumours set afloat, to her detriment. For instance, in 
1766, it was said she owed her late cook £50, and that 
she had run away from her ruined creditors, to France, 
with many thousand pounds. 

She had to contradict these reports, and said that she 
had, within thirteen months, spent ;£ 11,000, on the 
house, &c. 

Concerts, both instrumental and vocal, were given at 
Carlisle House, and the tickets for them, which survive, 
are very beautiful, many of them being drawn by Cipriani, 
and engraved by Bartolozzi. 

The Royal Family used to patronise her soirees, as 
did also the King of Denmark, when he visited England 
in 1768. 

Early in 1770, she gave her first Masquerade, which 
immediately lowered the tone of her establishment, and 
was the precursor of her downfall. This was under 
the patronage of the " Tuesday Night's Club," and the 
Dukes of Gloucester, and Cumberland — besides numbers 
of the aristocracy of both sexes, were present, and it 
was a very brilliant affair. 

She had another grand Masquerade on 6 February 
1 77 1, to which the price of admission was two and a 
half guineas. The same Royalty was present, and also 
the leading Nobility — Among the masques were five 
devils, a bear, and, worst of all bad taste, a shrouded 
corpse in a coffin, (said to be a brother of Colonel 
Luttrell), but he was, after a short time, ejected by some 
pseudo sailors. 



Old Times. 221 

From this time her fortunes declined — she was twice 
fined £50 for performing Operas, under the guise of 
harmonic meetings, and Guadagni, her principal vocalist, 
had been fined £50 for singing in the same, and these 
musical performances were put a stop to. 

But, in spite of all her enemies could do to her, she 
still had some friends, if we can believe the London 
Chronicle, 19-21 February 177 1. 

" A certain D s, who is a principal promoter of 

the New Opera House, declared, lately, she would 
persist in support of Mrs. C, whatever was the conse- 
quence, ' for/ said she, ' I hate the thoughts of mixing 
with any body merely because they have half a guinea 
in their pocket ; and that such scums should sit on the 
same bench, and think themselves on a level with the 
first nobility ! ' 'I agree with you ' (says Lady 

A r), ' and am grieved to think that we are, one 

day or other to mix in heaven with the dregs of the 

people.' ' God forbid ' (says the D s), ' I should 

ever be in such company.' " 

The Subscription balls, and Masquerades still went 
on — and she instituted a society called " the Coterie," 
which had not the reputation of insisting on the strictest 
morality on the part of its members. 

This coterie broke up. The Pantheon was built, and 
opened, in opposition to her. Perhaps she was extra- 
vagant, but, anyhow, from some cause or other, she 
became bankrupt, and was so gazetted on the 9th 
Nov. 1772, as a " chapwoman, and dealer in gloves." 
Her goods were sold in Dec. 1772, and it must have 
been a famous sale, as the Catalogues, to admit two, 
were five shillings each. 

She, herself, was taken to a debtor's prison, where 



222 Old Times. 

she could not have stopped very long, as there are 
advertisements of Masquerades conducted by her, at 
Carlisle House, in the spring and summer of 1773. 

She was again a bankrupt in Dec. 1774, and Carlisle 
House was advertised to be sold. Still, somehow or 
other, she must have found friends, with money, to 
help her, for she issued an advertisement, 15 January 
1776. " Mrs. Cornelys most respectfully takes the 
liberty to acquaint the nobility, and gentry, that, through 
the kind assistance of her friends, she is again reinstated 
in Carlisle House, on her own account." 

But nothing could bring back her old patrons, and 
the social status of her masked balls got lower and 
lower. Worse than all, the refreshments were not so 
plentiful as of old, as we may see in the " Citizen's 
Complaint to the Priestess of Soho," which concludes 

thus — 

" Yet fairy scenes and preparations, 
With all your novel decorations, 
Are diet fitter, let me tell ye, 
To feed the Fancy than the Belly." 

In 1778, Carlisle House was again to be sold, but 
still Madame Cornelys, somehow, kept her clutches on 
it. She established an "Academy of Sciences and 
Belles Lettres" — a Library with Newspapers, &c. — 
and a debating society, open to both Sexes. This 
"School of Eloquence" collapsed in 1781. Scientific 
lectures, Joseph Borouwlaski, the Polish Dwarf, and some 
more Masquerades, were all tried, but without avail, to 
resuscitate her fallen fortunes. It was said that she 
gave four and a half Masquerades, the half being 
accounted for, by the fact that no license had been 
taken out, and the masquers were ejected. 



Old Times. 223 

After 1782 Carlisle House seems to have been shut 
up ; on 28 June 1785, Christie sold the furniture, China, 
and other effects; and in 1788 the old Mansion was 
pulled down, and what was the grand Saloon has been 
altered into a Roman Catholic Chapel, St. Patrick's, 
Soho. 

There is no record of Madame for some years, but 
we know from Newspaper notices, that in 1792 she 
took a large house and grounds in Knightsbridge Road, 
formerly occupied by a dealer in Asses milk, and con- 
verted it into a " female archery." 

Luck was against her, this failed ; she was very old, 
had fought her fight, and now the refuge for the 
remainder of her days was the Fleet Prison. There, 
however, she met with kindness from friends, and 
help from her daughter, who was very accomplished, 
and no more is heard of her, until the paragraph in 
the Times, which heads this memoir. 

" Masquerade at Marlboro House. 

"At the Duchess of Marlborough's Gala, on Wednesday 
evening, one of the principal ornaments was the statute of 
Precedency, elegantly illuminated, in variegated lamps over 
the grand entrance. Lyon, Clarencieux, and Garter, Kings-at- 
Arms, in their coats of office, were stationed in the hall, and 
marshalled the guests upon their arrival. Upon the first land- 
ing place, were Her Grace's Vice-Chamberlain, and three 
Masters of the Ceremonies, attended by deputy Masters, and 
the Pages of the Presence, and back staircase. In the ante- 
chamber, covers were provided for the Lord Mayor, and 
Sheriffs of London, whose pease were said to be served cold, 
but his Lordship eat his peaches without hazarding any 
remarks. His Mace was thought to be one of the finest 
pieces of sculpture ever executed in pastry. It contained a 



224 Old Times. 

fine pine-apple in the capital, with a beautiful crown in Naples- 
biscuit, and his chair was entirely composed of barley sugar 
drops. In the next room were the Barons and Baronesses, 
the newly created ones next the door, and the premier Baron 
very near, but not in contact with the lowest Viscount, in the 
corridor of the third chamber. The Lord Chamberlain, the 
Lords of the Bedchamber, the Gold and Silver Sticks, &c, had 
their wands of the best double refined sugar, excepting the 
Gold Stick, whose staff was of barley-sugar, or as some say 
sugar-candy. 

"In the inner rooms, according to their rank, r and date, 
were placed the Earls, Marquisses, and Dukes of England. 
The premier Duke, and E. M., nearest to the Noble Hostess. 
The Lords on the cross bench were served with some difficulty 
by Beefeaters, who were obliged to move like the Knights at 
Chess, which had a very pretty effect. It added to the liveli- 
ness, and gaiety of the meeting, that every mask had for its 
neighbour, on both hands, the same individual it conversed 
with so frequently at Mr. Hasting's trial, which made the 
' 1 know you,' and ' Who are you ? ' exceedingly facetious and 
happy. The Lords of the Bedchamber were in high glee, 
and spirits, but were discovered by their jokes, some of which 
were remembered upon former occasions. The Maids of 
Honour were in perfect character and detected in an instant." 
— {Times, June 21, 1799.) 

Music was much in vogue both publicly and in private. 
Concerts were plentiful, the most aristocratic, perhaps, 
being held in Willis's Rooms, of which I will give one 
Advertisement, relating to a ball. 

Advt. — "Assembly Rooms, King Street, St. James's Square. 

" Willis humbly begs leave to acquaint the Nobility, and 
Gentry, Subscribers, that the first Ball, this season, com- 
mences This Day. 

" The Rooms will be lighted at Ten, and the Ball will be 
opened at Half-past Ten o'clock, precisely. 



o< 







«5 

I 
1 



V 

I 
f 



Old Times. 225 

" N.B. — By order of the Ladies (Directresses), no person 
whatever will be admitted without producing their ticket, and 
no ticket but those of the night, can possibly be admitted. 

"The Nobility and Gentry are most earnestly requested to 
order their Coachmen to set down, and take up, with their 
horses' heads towards St. James's Street. 

"The side doors are for chairs only." — {Morning Post \ Feb. 
14, 1788.) 

This refers only to the subscription Balls, which were 
so famous, and so select — but, as I said above, this was 
the chiefest Concert Hall. A greater libel against the 
English nation never was uttered, than when it was 
said they were not a musical nation — and it was, 
essentially, in Chamber music, glees, madrigals, ballads 
— small home concerts in which a few friends met 
together and spent a pleasant evening — in which the 
harpsichord, or pianoforte (for that instrument was then 
in vogue), joined with the cello, violin, and flute, in 
pretty, and harmonious, quartets. 

This Illustration shows Mrs. Billington and the Duke 
of Sussex, with two friends, thus engaged, and an 
exceedingly home-like group it is. 

It was an unusual thing for ladies, then, to play on 
any other instruments than the harpsichord, or piano, 
and the harp, or guitar; this latter coming specially 
into vogue, some twenty years later, after the Peninsular 
War, so Mrs. Billington created some surprise. 

"Mrs. Billington who is solicitous for musical distinction 
in any respect, as far as her talents can extend, is now apply- 
ing, with very great diligence, to the violin; and, from the 
present state of her progress, it is supposed she will hereafter 
figure amongst the most shining performers on that instru- 
ment." — {Morning Post, Feb. 16, 1788.) 

p 



226 Old Times. 

Judging by this illustration, the ladies of 1799 were 
not at all restricted in their choice of instruments. 

Apropos of Concerts, we get several paragraphs about 
them from one Newspaper, the Morning Post of Jan. 
15, 1789. 

"Since the illness of a certain Great Personage, 1 Lady 
Young has entirely surmounted her religious qualms, and is 
determined, once more, in defiance of the proclamation, to 
fix her Concerts on the Sabbath Day. Thus, Politics and 
religion, and music, go hand in hand." 

" Lord Hampden, Lord Cholmondeley, the Duke of Queens- 
bury, Lady Petres, the Duchess of Bolton, Lady Bridget 
Tollemache, &c, &c, will have their alternate concerts, as 
usual." 

"The dissensions continually subsisting between the dif- 
ferent performers and directors of the Tottenham Street 
Concert, 2 added to the present indisposition of its Royal 
Patron, and the daily decrease of subscribers, will, it is feared, 
reduce that light amusement to its primitive obscurity." 

" Should Cramer quit the above Concert, it will be a loss 
not to be repaired, as they might as well attempt to proceed 
without Harrison, as without that incomparable leader. Mr. 
Bate may conduct, but he cannot lead ; every man may blow 
the bellows, but it is certainly more difficult to play the organ." 

"Lord Uxbridge's new Music Room in Vigo Lane, will 
be opened in the course of this season ; the time is not yet 
fixed, but it is supposed it will be as magnificent a Gala, as 
music can afford. The extreme care taken that nothing 
should obstruct the sound, has nearly answered every pur- 
pose, and it certainly promises to be the best private room 
for music in London j — we hope, when filled with company, 
the small reverberation at present remaining, will be entirely 
dispelled." 

It is sad to read of such a case of reverse of fortune 
as the following : — 

1 The King's first attack of insanity. - Ancient Music. 




Savoyards of Fashion — /JJJ. 



Old Times. 227 

"A French Marchioness, who a few years since, possessed 
a fortune of ^"5000 a year, is engaged to sing before their 
Majesties at the Concerts of Antient Music, which com- 
mence on Wednesday next." — {Times, Feb. 1, 1794.) 

Of Pictorial Art, we hear but little in Old Times — but 
the Art Critic of the Morning Post, May 20, 1788, did 
not fear to speak out, and give his opinion freely. 

"Royal Academy. 

" 235. Theseus receiving the Clue from Ariadne. H. Fuseli. 
— Poor Theseus, with a broken leg, is endeavouring to support 
Ariadne, whose figure suggests more the idea of a sick ideot, 
than a beautiful woman. ^ Whilst we pity the situation of these 
two lovers, we cannot forbear laughing at the little cock-tailed 
Minotaur, galoping about, for amusement, in the distance. 
The design, however, has some merit, but Theseus appears as 
if he had left his skin behind him, and, indeed, some of his 
muscles are not in their proper places. 

"181. Portraits of three Children. P. Reinagle, A. — 
The Colouring of this picture is Currant Jelly and Chalk. 
The glare of crimson and red, confines the eye, in such a 
manner, that it is difficult to find out what the subject is meant 
for. This picture (like most of this Artist's works) is an imita- 
tion of the stile of some other master, which is certainly very 
commendable in a painter who possesses no genius of his own ; 
but as we do not think this is the case with Mr. Reinagle, we 
recommend him, as before, to look at nature. 

" 175. Portrait of a young Gentleman, and his brother, flying 
a Kite. W. R. Bigg, A. — We cannot determine on the like- 
ness of these portraits ; we are also at a loss to say, whether 
the figures, or the Kite, are drawn with most taste and 
elegance." 

Fuseli opened a Gallery for the display of a series of 
his paintings illustrating " Paradise lost." 

Advt. — " The general impression felt by all kinds of people, 



228 Old Times. 

on entering the Milton Gallery, is, this is unlike everything 
we have seen before. The old nurses stories about the 
devil are properly confuted by the exhibition of a figure that is 
bold, daring, and majestic, and a model of muscular strength 
and gigantic symmetry. ' I have often wondered,' said a 
Lady, 'how Eve could have been tempted to transgress by 
such a hideous monster, as Satan has been represented to me : 
but, if he was, in reality, such a being as Mr. Fuseli paints 
him, why — That accounts for it.'" 1 — (Times, fane 17, 1799.) 

Advt. "CURIOUS NEEDLEWORK. 

"VIEWS in EMBROIDERY will begin to be exhibited 
THIS DAY at No. 11, New Bond St., consisting of three views 
of Constantinople, two of Egypt, one of Switzerland, one of 
Weymouth, one of the Tower, and London Bridge, and of 
Blackfriars, &c, taken from the top of the Albion Mills, the 
same as has been seen at the Panorama. — Admittance 2s 6d. 
An Explanation, with a sketch of the above Views, will be 
given gratis, at the place of Exhibition." — (Times, April 13, 
I795-) 

Advt. "DAY EXHIBITIONS. 

" The convenience of Day Exhibitions must be obvious to 
the Polite Circles, who are otherwise engaged in the evening. 

"At the MECHANIC THEATRE, No. 38 Norfolk 
Street, Strand, will be exhibited the 

" ANDROIDES. 

" Doors open every day at half-past 12, and begins at 1, and 
every Evening doors open at half-past 7 and begins at 8. 

" These much-admired Pieces of Mechanism, which not 
only imitate human actions, but appear to possess rational 
powers, consist of, 1st — 

" The Writing Automaton. — A Figure, about the size of 
a Boy of four years old, which will be brought to a table, and 

1 A slang phrase then in use. 



Old Times. 229 

set to write any word, words, or figures required, in a round 
legible hand. 2nd — 

" The Fruiter y — the model of a neat rural mansion, and 
contains the following figures : first, the Porter, which stands 
in the gate, and, on being addressed, rings a bell, when the 
door opens, the Fruiteress comes out, and any Lady, or 
Gentleman, may call for whatever fruit they please, and the 
figure will return, and bring the kind required, which may be 
repeated ; and the fruit varied as often as the company pleases : 
it will likewise receive flowers, or any small articles, carry them 
in, and produce them again, as called for. As the Fruits are 
brought out, they will be given in charge to a Watch Dog, which 
sits in front of the house, and on any person taking away, or 
touching them, will begin to bark, and continue to do so until 
they are returned. The next figure belonging to this piece is, 
the Little Chimney Sweeper, which will be seen coming 
from behind the house, will enter the door, appear at the top 
of the chimney, and give the usual cry of 'Sweep' several 
times, descend the chimney, and come out with its bag full of 
soot. — Third, 

"The Liquor Merchant and Water Server. These 
are on a platform of about two feet square, which (as the 
former pieces) will be placed on a table. The Liquor Merchant 
stands at a small cask from which it will draw every kind of 
spirits, wine, &c, required. The Water Server stands at a 
pump, and will fill a tumbler with water as often as called 
for. — Fourth, 

" The Highland Oracle : a Figure in the Highland Dress, 
stands on a Time-piece, and gives the Hour and Minutes 
whenever asked, by striking its Sword on a Target : it gives a 
rational Answer (by Motion) to any Question proposed : it 
calculates Sums in Arithmetic, and gives the amount instantly 
of any number of pounds, yards, &c, at any given price, beats 
time to music, &c. 

" The Table the different Pieces will be played on, contains 
an Organ, on which the Proprietor introduces a few Notes : also 

" The Machine or (self-playing) Organ, will play occa- 
sionally several Pieces of Music, Airs, Country Dances, &c. 



230 Old Times. 

" Mr. Hadcock flatters himself the Androides will be found 
more curious than anything of the kind ever before offered to 
the Public, as the principles of Action are entirely new. The 
Theatre is neatly fitted up, and everything calculated to give 
satisfaction to a polite and discerning Audience. 

"Boxes 4s., Gallery 2s. Admittance, after the Two First 
Parts, Half Price. Exhibition lasts nearly Two hours." — ( Times, 
/any. 15, 1796.) 

If there was little mention of " Art," in the old news- 
papers, there was still less of " Literature," except in the 
advertisement of new books. 

"What is Jemmy Boswell about? where is his Life and 
Adventures of the great Lexicographer, the Atlas of obscure 
sentiment, and pompous phraseology ? Mrs. Piozzi's last work 
hath been read, and re-read, with avidity, and admiration. If 
the men doth not look sharp, the women will run off with all 
the biographic laurels." — {Morning Post, June 12, 1788.) 

Mrs. Thrale's book, " Letters to and from S. Johnson," 
was published in 1788, and her " Anecdotes of S. John- 
son, during the last twenty years of his life," in 1786. 
Boswell's " Life of Samuel Johnson," &c, was published 
in 1791. 

" The last exit of the celebrated Mr. Gibbon, was attended 
with some very extraordinary circumstances. He was sitting 
with an intimate friend, on the evening of his death, and 
remarking of himself, that he thought there was a probability 
of his enjoying thirteen, or fourteen, more years of life. He 
had not been long in bed, before he was seized with excru- 
ciating pains. He endeavoured to swallow some brandy, but 
in vain. He then made a signal to his valet to leave the 
room, and in a few minutes expired. He has left everything 
indiscriminately to a young Swiss gentleman, to whom he was 
attached, and who accompanied him last year to this country." 
— {Times, /any. 27, 1794.) 



Old Times. 231 

" Four thousand and seventy three Novels are now in the 
Press, from the pens of young Ladies of Fashion. At Mrs. 

D 's School all the young Ladies write Novels, in the 

fourth class ! ! and those whose parents are rich, or honourable, 
are at the expense of printing them. Lady L. G. and Lady 
C. C. are busily employed upon two rival Novels, which are 
the favourite work for Young Ladies at present : and the lawful 
successors of bell-ropes, coronet cushions, and painted flower- 
pots. Lady G.'s is entitled — 'Duke or no Duke/ Lady 
Charlotte's 'All for Nothing.' Those who have seen the 
latter, are loud in the praise of its beauties : the plot of the 
former is not thought to have been well laid." — {Times, April 
18, 1796.) 



n$2 Old Times. 



MONETARY. 

We are apt to think that among the other advantages 
of progressive Civilisation which we possess in this 
latter part of the 19th Century, Commercial failures and 
stoppage of Banks are peculiarly our own, but it was 
not so ; the years 1793 and 1796 — the former especially — 
were times of severe mercantile depression — the tale of 
which is best told in the language of the times. 

" The late considerable failures in the City are no longer 
to be concealed ; public credit cannot therefore, suffer the 
more by our publishing the fact. Four very considerable 
mercantile Houses have stopped payment within the last ten 
days : they are principally engaged in American West India 
Brokerage, and Insurance concerns. One house, alone, has 
failed for ^"800,000, and another for ^500,000. It is feared 
that many more persons will become involved in these failures 
— as there has been a very extensive circulation of paper. 
The failures already known, are estimated at three millions, 
and it is conjectured that they will extend to two millions 
more. They have, naturally, created a great scarcity of cash 
in the City, and the Bank, as well as the Bankers, are ex- 
tremely shy of discounting." — {Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) 

"Some more very considerable failures have taken place 
in the City, within the last two or three days. A very large 
African house, at Bristol, has likewise stopped payment, and 
the letters from thence advise, that it is feared many more will 
follow." — [Times, March 10, 1793.) 

"The Bankers, in the City, have refused to discount any 



Old Times. 233 

more paper, for the present. The alarm on the Royal Ex- 
change, is beyond conception to those who are not in busi- 
ness." — (Times, March 26, 1793.) 

"At the Meeting, on Monday, of the Noblemen, and 
Gentlemen, belonging to the County of Northumberland, we 
understand that ^340,000 was subscribed, to support the 
Newcastle Banks, the Proprietors of which, are gentlemen 
of the first landed property, and known to be worth many 
hundred thousand pounds. 

" The commercial stoppages, we are sorry to learn, have at 
length reached Manchester, and the most serious incon- 
veniencies are to be dreaded, if some effectual support is not 
given to that town. The mischief is so much dreaded, that a 
committee of Gentlemen, of that town, have come to London, 
to offer securities to the Bank, provided it will afford a 
temporary relief to the manufacturers who reside there." — 
(Times, April 18, 1793.) 

" Public Credit. 

"The very depressed state of the public credit of the country, 
is now so universally known, and felt, that it cannot suffer 
any additional injury by our stating the fact, and the means 
which are about to be carried into effect, as an experiment of 
relief. We daily hear of new stoppages among persons, many 
of whom have ever been considered as men of large real 
property : on a very minute, and fair, enquiry into the truth 
of this supposition, we have the best reason to believe that the 
fact is so; and that a very large proportion of mercantile 
houses, which have been, lately, obliged to suspend their pay- 
ments, is still solvent, and well able to pay every demand, in 
the course of time. At Manchester, Liverpool, and other 
large trading towns, particularly at the former, this fact is well 
authenticated ; but the failures at the country banks have 
stopped the circulation of money so suddenly, that present 
engagements have not been able to be fulfilled. To adopt a 
remedy, if possible, at this very alarming state of public credit, 
a meeting was held at Mr. Pitt's house, in Downing Street, 



234 Old Times. 

on Monday last, to consult on the business. The grievance 
being explained to Mr. Pitt, he assured the Gentlemen of his 
anxiety, and readiness to give every assistance, in his power, 
to the mercantile interest, and he requested they would consult 
among themselves, and form some specific proposition, for his 
consideration. A meeting was accordingly held, yesterday 
morning, at the Mansion-house, to consider of the plan which 
should be proposed to Mr. Pitt. The number of gentlemen 
was reduced to n, as being more convenient: and, at nine 
o'clock last night, they waited on the Minister, to obtain his 
approbation. 

" We do not take upon us to state, officially, the nature 
of the plan which has been proposed, but we are led to 
believe that the outlines of it are as follows : ' That four 
millions of Exchequer Bills should be issued for the sup- 
port of public credit, as a loan to the mercantile interest; 
that the security required, should be on goods actually ware- 
housed, and the advance to be made on two-thirds of their 
value. Commissioners to be appointed to superintend the 
securities, and the value of the merchandise. The Exchequer 
Bills to be called in as they become redeemed. The bor- 
rowers to be answerable for any loss in the discount of them.' 
The plan was left for Mr. Pitt's consideration, who is to give 
his answer this morning. Should he approve of it, it is pro- 
bable he will propose some resolution upon it, this day, in the 
House of Commons, to the end that the relief may be as 
speedy as possible." — {Times, April 24, 1793.) 

"The Funds continued falling yesterday, and Consols 
were below 60, for money. We shall be very much surprised 
if there were not some very considerable failures before 
the next settling day. Some persons connected with French 
Houses are known to be great losers." — (Times, July 15, 1796.) 

" We yesterday mentioned our expectation that there would 
be considerable failures among persons connected with French 
Houses, before the next settling day. A principal Stock- 
broker, immediately connected with a Gentleman, formerly a 



Old Times. 235 

Member of the Legislative Assembly, in France, was, yester- 
day declared a defaulter at the Stock Exchange. His 
differences are upon near half a million of Stock, which he 
had purchased at 67 and 68. This failure is the commence- 
ment of exposing that destructive system of gambling, called 
continuations. The Consols were done .yesterday at 59, for 
money." — (Times, July 16, 1796.) 

"Notwithstanding the enormous failures of two Stock 
brokers, whose differences amount to full £1 00,000, the 
desperate game of Continuation still continues nearly as 
strong as ever. Bargains for time, in Stock, were yesterday 
made for the next settling day, at a rate of 20 per cent., In- 
terest." — (Times, July 20, 1796.) 

"A very extraordinary fluctuation took place, yesterday, 
in the Funds, which, after having fallen in the early part of 
the day, to 53^, rose, towards the close of the market, to 565 
for the October settling. The reason alleged, for this sudden 
rise, was, that Mr. Hammond having been unsuccessful at 
Berlin, had gone from thence to Paris. Such was the report !" 
(Times, Sep. 7, 1798.) 

"The Chancellor (Irish) has declared from the Bench, 
that, in the present period of distress, no person shall be made 
a Bankrupt." — (Times, June 12, 1796.) 

The following is but a foreshadowing of our Railway 
Mania : — 

" Canal Shares, which at one time rose to £180, are 
now down to £40. The Mania is over; and this earth- 
cutting business, in a great measure, at a stand." — (Times, 
Aug. 16, 1796.) 

In 1796, there was an extraordinary scarcity of silver, 
which taxed severely, the resources of the Government 
to meet. The difficulty was met, to some extent, by the 
issue of Spanish Dollars, taken from Prizes, and stamped 



236 Old Times. 

at the j Tower, where the Mint then was, with a small 
head of the King. — These were issued at 4s. o,d. each — 
The same scarcity arose in 1803—4, and the same 
expedient was resorted to — only then the dollars were 
issued at a price over their value, so as to offer no 
premium for their destruction. 

" So great is the scarcity, and high price of silver, that the 
silver smiths give 5 s. 3d. for a crown piece, and a premium 
is given for shillings." — {Times, Jan. 7, 1796.) 

" Silver is so exceedingly scarce, that there is not a sufficient 
quantity, for exchange, in the channels of business, either 
good, or bad, and yet we are sorry to observe (which we have 
repeatedly) the number of unfortunate victims who are, every 
Session, brought to trial, for coining. Surely the wisdom of 
the Legislature might prevent this evil, by issuing a sufficient 
quantity for the purposes of circulation." — {Times, Sept. 15, 
1796.) 

" The distress for want of Silver, is daily, more and more 
felt among the trading parts of the Metropolis. These are 
put to the greatest inconvenience, for want of a greater 
circulation ; and, we understand that those who have many 
men in their employ, are obliged to give one per cent., to 
procure it. The many complaints which are made, on this 
subject, induces us to hope that the issue of a fresh coinage, 
from the Mint, will speedily take place. The want of it has 
another bad effect, as it increases the coining of base half- 
pence." — {Times, Sept. 29, 1796.) 

"Yesterday, the Committee of Bankers had another Meet- 
ing at Mr. Pitt's, to request his interference in procuring 
them a certain quantity of specie, for the demands of their 
business. The Minister returned for answer, that he could 
only assist them, at present, with 50,000 guineas : which, 
being divided among all the Bankers, will not amount to 
1000 guineas for each House. 



Old Times. 237 

" We hope that the Bank, instead of issuing dollars at 
4s. 6d., will place a value of 5s. on them, in order that they may 
not become an object of traffic : their intrinsic worth is above 
4S.6d., and they should, therefore, be issued at some higher price, 
in order that they may not be hoarded. 

" There can be no doubt whatever, but that large sums of 
specie have been drawn out of the Bank, and concealed in 
the houses, or gardens, of private persons. As this stoppage 
of general circulation is highly prejudicial to the Public Weal, 
we have only to observe to such persons, that their extreme, 
and foolish timidity, may produce, to themselves, the very 
consequences they seek to avert : and that, instead of being 
richer, they may fall the first victims of their alarms. Wher- 
ever large sums of money are privately deposited, except it is 
with those whose 'occupation it is to hold it, such persons are 
likely to be the first objects of popular revenge. The Bank, 
or the houses of Bankers, are the only secure places of 
deposits." — (Times, March 3, 1797.) 

" According to letters received, on Wednesday, in town, 
the Banks at Norwich, and at Bath, have stopped payment in 
specie. Since the news reached the country, of the Bank of 
England stopping payment, not a guinea is to be had, in ex- 
change for Bank-notes, on any of the Public roads." — (Times, 
March 3, 1797.) 

"On Saturday, a small quantity of one, and two, Pound 
Notes were issued from the Bank, principally for the use of 
the country. A very large issue will be made in the cburse 
of this day, and to-morrow." — (Times, March 6, 1797.) 

" This day, the Governors of the Bank will issue a quantity 
of dollars, to which the Tower Stamp is affixed, in order to 
relieve the present embarrassment arising from scarcity of 
specie." — (Times, March 6, 1797.) 

" Sterling Silver was done, on Saturday, as high as 5s. 8d. per 
ounce, and Gold at ^4, 8s. The price of Silver, is 5& per 
ounce, above the rate at which coined silver passes, and the 



238 Old Times. 

price of Gold 10s. per ounce, above the current price of the 
Guinea !" — {Times, March 8, 1797.) 

"Yesterday, the Bank began to issue Dollars at 4s. 9& each. 
There is the Mint Stamp affixed to each, which consists of 
the King's Head, marked on the King of Spain's neck. We 
trust that this issue of Dollars is intended to make room for a 
new importation from some rich Spanish prizes, which we 
hope to see in some of our ports." — (Times, March 10, 1797.) 

" Several German Hard Dollars, or four-gold-pieces, nomi- 
nally worth 4s. 8d. have been issued from the Bank, in the same 
manner as the Spanish Dollar." — (Times, March 27, 1797.) 

"The Dollars now issuing at the Bank, are those which 
were taken on board the St. Jago prize ship." — (Times, 
March 17, 1797.) 

" A very serious inconvenience has occurred to many 
people, from the multiplicity of forgeries in the stamps on the 
dollars, which, from being issued by the Bank, at a price so 
far above their real value, has tempted the coiners to forge 
the Mint Stamp, which it is impossible for a common observer 
to detect. Since their first issue, many chests of dollars have 
been imported into this country, for the sole purpose of forging 
the stamp. As they are circulated at 4s. 9d., and their value is 
only 4s. 2d.,ithas afforded too great a temptation to beresisted. 
Besides the vast number of copper dollars coined, it is sup- 
posed that more than half of those in circulation, are counter- 
feited in the stamp, though the dollars are good. When taken 
to the Bank they are refused, which has caused a deal of ill 
humour." — (Times, Sept. 4, 1797.) 

"In consequence of the great quantity of bad Dollars, in 
circulation, the Bank Directors gave notice, in the Gazette 
of last night ; that they mean to issue Gold coin, to the amount 
of the Dollars now in circulation, and which have been 
stamped at the Tower." — (Times, Sept. 27, 1797.) 

" The Dollars having been taken out of circulation, there 



Old Times. 239 

is now such a scarcity of silver, as to impede the 'ordinary 
negotiation of business very materially. It would be a public 
convenience if the new 7s. gold coin was put in circulation." 
—{Times, Oct. 5, 1797.) 

"The new gold coinage of seven shilling pieces is to be 
issued from the Bank, this day." — {Times, Dec. 1, 1797.) 

Up to this time forgeries of Bank of England notes 
had been very rare. 

" Last week a man was apprehended at Manchester, on a 
charge of forging Bank of England notes. On searching his 
house, was found a plate, with a one pound note engraved, on 
one side of it, and a two pound note, on the other ; together 
with a number of notes just struck off, but not filled up. On 
his examination he confessed the fact, and thereby impeached 
his brother, who, he said, was then in Yorkshire : and acknow- 
ledged that they had practised it about six months, during 
which time they had disposed of about 200." — {Times, March 
30, 1798.) 

"A small delivery of Mr. Boulton's 2d. pieces, was, on 
Friday, made at the Treasury ; the likeness of the King is 
much better executed than in the id. pieces : they are full 
twice their thickness, weighing rather better than two ounces 
each." — {Times, Feby. 12, 1798.) 

" The trade of counterfeit halfpence, though it got a tem- 
porary check within the last five weeks, is again getting for- 
ward. The turnpike men, coffee-house waiters, haberdashers' 
shops, fruit women, and porter houses, are at their old work. 
The turnpike men will give bad, but not take them at present. 
If the traveller objects, he is abused and kept waiting, perhaps 
ten minutes, for change of 6d. : the coffee-house waiters say 
they have no others, and that they give and take ; the haber- 
dashers fold the change up in a clean bit of paper, which 
when^ opened, contains the worst of counterfeit halfpence : 



240 Old Times. 

and the fruit women and porter houses say ' they give what 
they take.'" — (Times, Oct. 2, 1794.) 

" Bad shillings are sold to chandlers shops, turnpike men, 
and waiters at coffee-houses and taverns, at the rate of 
twenty shillings for five and sixpence. No wonder they are in 
such general circulation." — (Times, Nov. 29, 1794.) 

" At this season the Jew fruitmen should be particularly 
guarded against. They care not at how small a price they sell, 
so the quantum reaches to silver. In that case it is their 
custom 'to hope you will give them good silver, as the 
gardeners are very particular.' They then rub it with both 
thumbs, dexterously contriving to fillip up your shilling, and 
drop down another, which they beg you to change, protesting 
that they believed it good but are not certain. Serving you 
the same a second or third time, and you are induced through 
an appearance of great civility, and apparent ignorance, to 
indulge them. The silver you receive as your own is speciously 
good : but it changes black in a few hours. The writer of 
this bought his experience at the price of three succeeding 
shillings." — (Times, July, 30, 1795.) 



"BAD HALFPENCE. 

"To the Master of the Mint — 
"The Petition of more than Ten Millions of bad 
Halfpence, 
" Most humbly showeth, 

" That your Petitioners, for a number of years, have given 
bread to thousands of his Majesty's subjects, called Coiners : 
and that they have been long in uncontrouled circulation : 

"That your Petitioners have enabled Waiters at Taverns, 
and other houses, to wear hair-powder, to the manifest increase 
of his Majesty's Stamp-duties. 

" That your Petitioners have been the means of the Turnpike 
Tolls increasing in value, on account of the Toll-takers being 



Old Times. 241 

obliged to put off a certain quantity of your Petitioners, each 
week, at a stipulated price from the Renters. 

" That your Petitioners have long been a fine bonus to the 
Paymaster Serjeants of the different Regiments, who bought 
your Petitioners at the rate of 30s. for 20s., thereby making 
those brave fellows to live more comfortably, than their regular 
pay would allow them to do : 

" That your Petitioners have, for a series of time, been of 
infinite service to those industrious men, the Tribes of Levi, 
and Manassa, who distributed your Petitioners, in the most 
plentiful manner, to their own great advantage : 

" That your Petitioners have, in some manner, been the means 
of peopling Botany Pay, as numbers of persons, who were first 
in the habit of forming your Petitioners, afterwards mounted to 
the honour of making shillings, and sixpences : 

" That your Petitioners, with great sorrow, perceive, by the 
effect of a new coinage of Penny, and Twopenny Pieces, that 
their existence is rapidly on the decline : 

" Your Petitioners therefore pray that their grievances may 
be taken into consideration : and they will, as in duty bound, 
ever pray. Bad Halfpence." 

—{Times, Aug. 17, 1795.) 

"FALSE COINAGE. 

" The numerous evils arising from the now general circula- 
tion of Base Money, are too well known, to make it necessary 
that they should be dwelt on by us. We have always consi- 
dered the different Administrations of this Country, as highly 
blameable for not paying more attention, than they have done, 
to prevent the nefarious practices which are introduced in the 
introduction of almost every species of Counterfeit Coin into 
the circulation of the country, because it certainly has the 
means in its own power, of lessening the mischief, by issuing 
a new coinage, particularly of Halfpence, which are, now, so 
generally bad, and so profligately circulated, that scarce a 
good halfpenny is to be seen. . . . The vast increase, and the 
extensive circulation, of base Money, particularly of late 
years, . . . almost exceeds credibility, and the dexterity, and 
ingenuity, of these criminal people have enabled them to 

Q 



242 Old Times. 

finish the different kinds of counterfeit Money, in so masterly 
a manner, that it has become extremely difficult, for the 
common observer, to distinguish the base Coin, now in circu- 
lation, from the worn out Silver, from the Mint. And, so 
systematic has this nefarious traffic become, that the great 
dealers, who in most instances are the employers of the 
Coiners, execute orders for the Town, and Country, with the 
same regularity as other manufacturers in fair branches of 
trade. Scarce a waggon, or coach, departs from the metro- 
polis, that does not carry boxes, and parcels, of base coin, to 
the camps, seaports, and manufacturing towns, insomuch, that 
the country is deluged with counterfeit Money. In London, 
regular markets, in various public, and private, houses, are 
held by the principal Dealers, where Hawkers, Pedlars, fraudu- 
lent Horse-dealers, Unlicensed Lottery Office Keepers, Gam- 
blers at Fairs, Itinerant Jews, Irish Labourers, Servants of Toll 
Gatherers, and Hackney-Coach Owners, fraudulent Publicans, 
Market Women, Rabbit Sellers, Fish Cryers, Barrow Women, 
and many who would not be suspected, are regularly supplied 
with counterfeit Copper, and Silver, with the advantages of 
nearly 100 per cent, in their favour : and thus it happens, that 
through these various channels, immense quantities of base 
Money get into circulation, while an evident diminution of 
the Mint Coinage, is apparent to every common observer. . . . 
Discoveries have been recently made, of no less than 120 
persons, in the metropolis, and the country, who are employed, 
principally, in coining, and selling, Base Money : and this, 
independent of the numerous horde of utterers, who chiefly 
support themselves by passing it at its full value. 

" It will scarcely be credited, that of these criminal people 
who have either been detected, prosecuted, or convicted, 
within the last seven years, there stand upon the register of 
the Solicitor of the Mint, no less than 608 names ! and yet 
the evil increases rapidly. And when it is known, that two 
persons can finish from ^200, to ^300, in base silver, in six 
days, and that three people, within the same period will stamp 
the like amount, in Copper, and when the number of known 
coiners are taken into the calculation, the aggregate in the 
course of the year must be immense !" — (Times, Oct. 5, 1796.) 



Old Times. 243 



LAW AND POLICE. 

In treating the above heading, I have no wish to intro- 
duce the " Newgate Calendar " element into this book. 
Let those who like such literature, consult that work — 
and, doubtless, they will be rewarded for their pains ; 
but, in going through these old papers, much that is 
curious is met with, which throws light on the manners, 
and customs, of our forefathers. 

Of Police, as we understand the word, there was 
none — and the parochial Constables, and watchmen, who 
were supposed to guard the premises of the rate payers, 
and to keep the peace, were veritably of the Dogberry 
and Verges type — utterly useless for the detection, or 
suppression, of crime, and only fit to " comprehend all 
vagrom man," or lead some roysterer home. 

All day long they were not ; but, at night, they came 
out with the bats, and owls, armed with a long staff, and 
a lantern, periodically droning out the hour of the night, 
and the state of the weather. This was done with the 
laudable intention of shewing their vigilance, but it must 
equally have acted in an opposite direction, for every 
thief must have had due warning of the watchman's 
whereabouts. They had temporary shelters, larger than 
the Military Sentry box, and the wild- spirits of those 
days delighted to catch a watchman napping, and over- 
turn his box, thus temporarily incapacitating him from 



244 Old Times. 

giving an alarm, or following their flight. For the 
former purpose they used huge rattles, smaller specimens 
of which were carried, for the same purpose, by our 
own Metropolitan Police, until 1884. 

Each parish looked after its own interests, had its 
own watch and ward, and was mightily jealous of inter- 
ference from another parish — an arrangement evidently 
very much to the advantage of a thief. People were 
always grumbling — but the state of things was never 
altered. Hear what they said about it in 1788 : — 

"The Decrepid old Dotards, to whose vigilance the 
different Vestries have confined their fellow Citizens, are likely 
to profit from the order of nature being reversed by the life of 
our modern nobility, who, rising at two, dining at eight, and 
paying afternoon visits at midnight, have superseded the neces- 
sity of having watchmen, and are, in fact, with their servants, 
a much better patrole than any of the Bow Street Justices 
could furnish." — {Morning Post, April 21, 1788.) 

There were amateur thief catchers like Jonathan 
Wild, men who would be the companions, and con- 
federates, of Highwaymen, Housebreakers, and Thieves, 
drawing Money from them until they were sucked dry, 
and then sacrifice them without an atom of remorse. 

And there were the detectives of that time, the Bow 
Street Runners, or Robin Red breasts as they " were 
called, from their wearing red waistcoats. Peter Pindar 
sang of them, especially of the three that were detailed 
for the protection of the Royal family at the time of the 
French Revolution. 



What a bright thought in George and Charlotte, 
Who to escape each wicked Varlet, 

And disappoint Tom Paine's disloyal crew, 



r 

5k 




Old Times. 245 

Fixed on Macmainis, Townsend, yealous, 
Delightful company, delicious fellows, 

To point out, every minute, who is who ! 
To hustle from before their noble graces, 
Rascals with ill looks, designing faces, 

Where treason, murder, and sedition dwell ; 
To give the life of every Newgate wretch, 
To say who next the fatal cord shall stretch, 

The sweet historian of the pensive cell." 

Townsend, was undoubtedly the sharpest of the three, 
but he was a pushing, boastful fellow, and never hid his 
light under a bushel. He was, however, courageous, 
and never heeded where he went, or what odds were 
opposed to him ; so that the criminal classes began to 
respect him, and, at last, never thought of opposing him. 
He was extremely natty in his dress, and his flaxen wig 
was as well known, as his short stout figure, and his 
red face — 

" Of all the wigs in Brighton Town, 
The black, the gray, the red, the brown, 
So firmly glued upon the crown, 

There's none like Johnny Townsend's ; 
It's silken hair, and flaxen hue, 
It is a scratch, and not a queue, 
When e'er it pops upon the view, 

Is known for Johnny Townsend's." 

It was by his means, that the famous pickpocket, 
Barrington, was convicted, and transported, a fact which 
was very much to Barrington's advantage, for he helped 
to put down a mutiny on board, whilst on his passage 
out, for which he was well rewarded, and, by his good 
conduct, he rose from step to step, always in the Colonial 
police — until he died Chief of the Constabulary in New 
South Wales. 



246 Old Times. 

The laws were then frightfully severe in their punish- 
ments, but this severity did not act as a deterrent to 
crime. The punishment of death, (and hanging was the 
punishment for many trivial crimes) seems to have had 
no terror — for we read in the Morning Post, July nth 
1788, " The number of Capital Convicts at present in 
Newgate is eighty-one ! " Of course, these were not all 
executed, some having their sentences commuted to 
transportation for life. Let us take a few cases from one 
Newspaper only, the Morning Post, September II, 1788. 
It was the Sessions at the Old Bailey, 9th September : — 

"John Dancer, was put to the bar, and tried before Judge 
Grose, for a burglary, and robbery, in the empty dwelling-house 
of Daniel Dancer, 1 a farmer, near Uxbridge. This offence is 
made capital by the 39th Elizabeth. The jury brought in a 
verdict, guilty, of the value of ^5. — Death. 

" John Crawford, for a burglary in the house of Francis 
Bias. The crime being fully proved. — Guilty — Death. 

" William Johnson, for a burglary and robbery of poultry, 
in the dwelling house of Margaret Allen, at Hampstead. — 
Guilty — Death, 

" Thomas Jones, for a highway robbery of a watch &c. 
He was taken in the manier — i.e. with the watch upon him. — 
Guilty — Death. 

" Several other prisoners were tried and acquitted for various 
offences, particularly one for a rape — his crime was only 
Seduction ! " 

" Monday evening, as a lady was passing along Long-Acre, 
she was jostled into a Court by a number of those abandoned 
wretches, who to the disgrace of our police and magistrates, 
infest every corner of the Metropolis, where they stripped her 
of her cloak, bonnet, and of almost everything she had on, 
besides grossly insulting her. The Public Offices of Justice 

1 The celebrated Miser. During the last 20 years of his life, his house 
is said to have been entered, by thieves, no less than fourteen times — and 
the amount of his losses, is calculated at £2, 500. 



Old Times. 247 

are every morning full of these women of the town, who have 
been taken up for their disorderly behaviour. But, while the 
connection between them and the Watchmen subsists, the evil 
must still remain. It is an evil of the most serious and alarm- 
ing nature, and peculiarly calls for the interposition of the 
Legislature." — (Morning Post, Sept. 26, 1788.) 

" There are at this time, in Newgate, upwards of Seven 
Hundred prisoners, the greatest number ever known to be in 
that place of confinement, at the same time." — (Morning Post, 
Dec. 5, 1788.) 

" Kelly who was pilloried at Reading, brings actions against 
those who pelted him. This is a new cause of trial, but clearly 
a legal one." — (Morning Post, Dec. 23, 1789.) 

Here, they evidently " caught a Tartar." The pelting 
could have been no part of the man's sentence — but what 
was the issue of his appeal to law, I know not. 

About the year 1790, occurs a most singular police 
episode, so singular, and so comparatively unknown, that 
I cannot refrain from somewhat enlarging upon it. 

In the early spring of 1790, murmurs began to be 
heard of ladies being attacked, and stabbed, by a monster 
in human form. The murmurs were low at first, and 
" monster " was printed with a small " m ; " but, very 
shortly, they grew into a roar, and no capitals were 
found too large for THE MONSTER. 

Indeed, even before that, and as far back as May, 
1788, a Mrs. Smith had been stabbed in the upper part 
of her thigh by a man in Fleet Street, and was even 
followed by him to a house in Johnson's Court, to which 
she was going, and watched by him until she was let in. 
In May, 1789, a Mrs. Godfrey was similarly stabbed in 
Boswell Court, Fleet Street ; and another lady was left 
wounded at her door. In March, 1790, a Mrs. Blaney, 
of Bury Street, was stabbed at her door after she had 



248 Old Times. 

knocked. Dr. Smith, seeing an account of this outrage 
in a newspaper, inserted a notice in the Morning Herald, 
and that journal, having made some severe remarks on 
the matter, public opinion began to be awakened, and 
numerous letters were written, on the subject, to the 
newspapers of the day. The thing began to be talked 
of in the higher circles. A young lady named Porter 
had been stabbed whilst, in the company of her sisters, 
returning from the Drawing Room at St. James's, on 
the 1 8th of January, the Queen's Birthday ; and since 
that time, several people had been wounded by this mis- 
creant, who, fortunately, always failed in doing serious 
injury to his victims. 

Mr. John Julius Angerstein (whose name will ever be 
associated with the commencement of our National 
Gallery) was very active, and inaugurated a subscription 
at Lloyd's, to which the guineas flowed merrily, for the 
capture, and conviction of the " Monster." The police 
began to bestir themselves, and they, too, issued placards. 
One will serve as a type of all : — 

" Public Office, Bow Street, 
Thursday, April 29, 1790. 

" One Hundred Pounds Reward. 

" Several ladies having, of late, been inhumanly cut, and 
maimed, by a person answering the following description, 
whoever will apprehend him, or give such information to Sir 
Sampson Wright, at the above office, as may be the means of 
his being apprehended, shall immediately upon his committal 
to prison, receive fifty pounds from Mr. Angerstein of Pall 
Mall, and the further sum of fifty pounds upon his conviction. 
N.B. — He appears to be about thirty years of age, of a middle 
size, rather thin make, a little pockmarked, of a pale com- 
plexion, large nose ; light brown hair, tied in a queue, cut 
short and frizzed low at the sides ; is sometimes dressed in 




7ie MOnSTZF^ caMnJ a iaJy.-//30. 



Old Times. 249 

black, and sometimes in a shabby blue coat ; sometimes wears 
straw-coloured breeches, with half boots, laced up before : some- 
times wears a cocked hat, and at other times a round hat, with a 
very high top, and generally carries a Wangee cane in his hand. 
" All servants are recommended to take notice that if any 
man has stayed at home without apparent cause, within these 
few days, during the daylight. All washerwomen and servants 
should take notice of any blood on a man's handkerchief, or 
linen, as the wretch generally fetches blood when he strikes. 
All servants should examine if any man carries sharp weapons 
about him, and if there is any blood thereon, particularly 
tucks ; and maid-servants are to be told that a tuck is generally 
at the head of a stick, which comes out by a sudden jerk. All 
cutlers are desired to watch if any man answering the above de- 
scription is desirous of having his weapon of attack very sharp." 

All baker's men were asked to give notice at every 
house they called at, of the above reward, and Mr. 
Angerstein promised twenty pounds to any man by 
whose instrumentality the Monster was discovered. 

Additional publicity was, moreover, given by other 
means. The Morning Herald of April 27th says : 

" A new musical piece was produced last night at 
Astley's called The Monster, and being brought forward 
at a time when the attention of all London was engaged 
in discovering him, cannot fail of producing full houses. 
Astley seems to have taken up the matter very seriously, 
as the piece abounds with much satire against the 
Monster. The songs also are well adapted : the chorus 
of one concluding as follows, 

' When the Monster is taken in the fact 
We'll have him tried by the Coventry Act, 1 
The Black Act 
The Coventry Act,' 

1 This Act, against cutting and maiming, owed its name to Sir John 
Coventry, who, in Charles the Second's time, was favourable to a motion, 



250 Old Times. 

produced unbounded applause. This piece will cer- 
tainly be a good acquisition to Astley, who is said to be 
the author." 

One lady (Mrs. R. Walpole) was fortunate enough to 
escape being wounded, owing to her having an apple in 
her pocket : an incident which gave rise to some poetic 
effusions : 

" Eve, for an apple, lost immortal life : 
From you an apple turn'd the Monster's knife ! 
Can greater proof, since Eve, be given 
Of diabolic strife, 
Or interposing Heaven ? " 

" The apple was, in days of yore, 
An Agent to the Devil, 
When Eve was tempted to explore 
The sense of good and evil ; 
But present chronicles can give 
An instance quite uncommon, 
How that which ruined Mother Eve 
Hath saved a Modern Woman." 

The Monster was even made a party to Anti-slavery 
agitation, for at the Westminster Forum in Panton Street, 
Haymarket, " by desire of several ladies," was debated 
the question : " Which is the greater disgrace to humanity, 
the ruffian who drags the female African from her family, 
her kindred, and her native country, or the Monster who 

in the House of Commons, to impose a tax on play-houses, which was 
opposed by the Court. Sir John Birkenhead having remarked that the 
players were the King's servants, and a part of his pleasure, Sir J. Coventry 
asked "Whether the King's pleasure lie among the men, or the women, 
that acted? " This was neither forgotten nor forgiven, and Sir John was 
set upon whilst walking home, by some ruffians. He defended himself 
desperately, and wounded some of his assailants, but was overpowered, 
and his nose slit to the bone, " for reflecting on the King." This outrage 
excited great indignation at the time. 



Old Times. 251 

has lately wounded, or terrified, many ladies in this 
metropolis ? " The result of this discussion is not 
handed down to posterity. 

Still the Monster kept steadily at his work, and almost 
every day brought its tale of some woman being stabbed : 
and, one being injured in St. Pancras Parish, a meeting of 
the inhabitants was called at the Percy Coffee House, on 
May 7th, and an association was formed " to nightly patrol 
the streets of the south division of Saint Pancras, from 
half-an-hour before sunset, till eleven at night, for the 
public safety, and especially to guard that sex which a 
Monster, or Monsters, in opposition to the dictates of 
nature, and humanity, have dared to assault, and wound, 
with wanton, and savage, cruelty." 

The idea that these outrages were not done single- 
handed, was on the increase, and the indefatigable Mr. 
Angerstein again issued a placard, and " informs the public, 
that from information he has received of the person who, 
since Friday last, has assaulted and wounded several 
women, there is great reason to fear that more than one 
of these wretches infests the streets : it is therefore 
thought necessary to give the following description of one, 
who, within this week, has committed many acts of 
cruelty upon women," and gives four descriptions of the 
man's dress, which would lead to the inference that the 
Monster was' in possession of a very extensive wardrobe. 

People were now gradually getting into a state of 
ferment, and the Monster was the engrossing topic of 
public interest. Of course, then as now, the wrong 
people were arrested occasionally. One " Walter Hill, 
was brought before the Magistrate at Litchfield Street 
on suspicion of being one of the wretches who have cut 
several women ; he was apprehended in Windmill Street, 



252 Old Times. 

Tottenham Court Road, near the place where two women 
were cut, though Miss Porter, and several other ladies, 
declared the prisoner was not the person who wounded 
them." Nothing could be proved against him, and, ulti- 
mately, he was discharged. 

Even the light-fingered fraternity entered into the 
spirit of the times, for The World of May nth has — 
" Public Office, Bow St., before Sir Sampson Wright. 
Yesterday evening, about half after seven o'clock, a 
gentleman of family and fortune, was surrounded in 
Holborn by a number of pickpockets, who, after hustling 
him, and robbing him of his watch, money, and hat, 
called out : ' That is the Monster, he has just cut a 
woman.' A vast number of people immediately pursued 
the gentleman, some calling ' The Monster ! ' others, 
' Stop thief/ till at length he was knocked down, and 
surrounded by near a thousand people, by whom he was 
very ill-treated, and, probably, would not have escaped 
with life, had he not been, by some gentleman, taken 
into Gray's Inn Coffee House ; from whence he was con- 
veyed to the Brown Bear, in Bow Street, in a hackney- 
coach ; where the mob were so exasperated that they 
broke the windows of the house, and, could they have 
got at him, would, no doubt, have massacred him : by 
stratagem he was, at nine o'clock, brought to this office. 
When the above facts appeared, Sir Sampson Wright 
lamented that it was not in his power to punish the per- 
petrators of this daring, and alarming, assault, but did 
all he could, by giving that gentleman his protection 
until the mob dispersed." 

Accounts of mock assaults were written to the papers, 
one of them extremely circumstantial, telling how a 
courageous lady drew a pistol " from her pocket and 



Old Times. 253 

discharged it into the wretch's neck, immediately under 
the ear, who instantly left her, uttering the most dreadful 
imprecations." This, it is needless to say, was denied, 
and exposed next morning. 

Imposture, of course, took advantage of such a golden 
opportunity, and we find that " the account which appeared 
in all the newspapers of Miss B. of Marylebone Street, 
having been twice wounded by the Monster, proves to 
be a fabrication, for the purpose of exciting compassion, 
and money, and has, in some degree, answered the pur- 
pose. The above discovery has been made, by an investi- 
gation of this business, by the Select Vestry of Marylebone 
Parish. This is a new kind of Monster ! " 

The Oracle of May 17th tells the following little 
story : — " Tuesday, about nine o'clock, as Mr. Heather 
was crossing Tower Hill, he observed a well-dressed 
woman upon the ground : when he went to her, she said 
a very tall man had just wounded her with some sharp 
instrument, and begged his assistance to get to the 
Minories to a coach, which he readily complied with, 
upon observing blood in several places upon her gown 
and apron. However, the coach had not been gone ten 
minutes, before he found she had picked his pocket of 
his watch, and about three guineas." 

Although there was now a cessation of real attacks by 
the Monster, the public feeling rose to very fever height. 
As one newspaper remarked : " The Monster is now a 
mischief of more than common magnitude. Inhuman 
himself, the villainy is visited upon all who are of the 
same sex : alike the source of apprehension, terror, and 
flight. It is really distressing to walk our streets towards 
evening. Every woman we meet regards us with dis- 
trust, shrinks sidling from our touch, and expects a 



254 Old Times. 

poignard to pierce what gallantry, and manhood, consider 
as sacred. There must be a very criminal supineness 
somewhere, or these execrable villains would, with greater 
speed, expiate with their lives, the insulted humanity 
of being." 

As an example of the pitch to which the excitement 
was wrought, the following case may be taken. A man 
met a girl, and went with her into a public-house. They 
sat down, and he showed her an artificial bouquet, or 
nosegay, as it was then called, which he had in his hand, 
and begged her to accept it. The girl, in taking hold of 
it, felt something prick her, and it made her hand bleed. 
She went away, and told the story to some of her friends, 
who immediately insisted that it must be the Monster, 
and that a dagger was certainly concealed in the nosegay. 
The man was in consequence arrested, and kept all night 
in the watch-house. On enquiry in the morning, it was 
found that the girl's hand had only been pricked by the 
wire used to bind the flowers together, and the poor man 
was, of course, discharged. 

But Nemesis was at hand. One of his victims — 
that Miss Porter, who was stabbed after the Drawing 
Room, on the Queen's birthday — was walking with Mr. 
John Coleman, in St. James's Park, on Sunday, June 
13th, and the Monster passed her. She at once 
recognised him, and, her agitation being remarked by 
Mr. Coleman, she said, " There is the wretch who 
wounded me." Mr. Coleman left her in charge of her 
friends, and followed the man, who walked very fast — 
evidently feeling he had been noticed, and endeavoured 
to dodge about from Spring Gardens, to Admiralty 
Passage, back again to Spring Gardens, and up Cockspur 
Street, to Pall Mall : thence to St. James's Street, and 



Old Times. 255 

Bolton Street, where he knocked at the door of a house, 
and was let in. He stayed there about five minutes, 
and then went to Piccadilly, and St. James's Street, 
where he knocked at another house, and asked the 
servant some question. Leaving there, he went to 
Bond Street, Mr. Coleman endeavouring to insult him, 
by walking before and behind him, and staring him in 
the face. He then went to Oxford Street — then called 
Oxford Road — and Vere Street, where he knocked at 
an empty house. Then Mr. Coleman spoke to him, and 
asked him what was the use of knocking so violently at 
a house palpably empty ; and he replied that he knew 
the people of the house, named Pearce, and knocked 
again for three or four minutes. He then crossed to 
South Molton Street, knocked at a house, and was 
admitted. Mr. Coleman asked the master of the house, 
Mr. Smith, for information as to the man, but he refused 
to give any, unless some reason was assigned. Mr. 
Coleman replied that the other had insulted some ladies 
under his protection, and that he demanded satisfaction. 
The Monster offered to meet him at any coffee-house, 
and gave his address as Fifty-two Jermyn Street. Mr. 
Coleman then let him go, but upon second thoughts 
hurried back, and again met him in St. James's Street ; 
and looking at him, told him he did not think he was 
what he described himself, and asked him to come with 
him to Mr. Porter's house, which was not far off. He 
consented, and on seeing him, two of the Miss Porters 
immediately fainted, but upon recovery unhesitatingly 
declared him to be " the wretch." He turned to Mr. 
Coleman and asked : " Do the ladies suspect me to be 
the person advertised ? Am I suspected ? " 

He was given into custody, and on the 15 th of June, 



256 Old Times. 

the newspapers gave full accounts of his capture and 
examination. 

He proved to be a native of Wales, named Renwick 
(or Rhynwick) Williams, aged about twenty-three, who 
was sent young to London, where he was bound 
apprentice to Sir John Gallini, with a view to his 
becoming a dancer on the stage. A misunderstanding, 
as to the disappearance of a watch, severed this con- 
nection, and he then led a very loose life. For some 
little time, about two months, he was a lawyer's clerk, 
but this employment being only temporary, he was 
reduced to difficulties, until he met with Mr. Aimable 
Michell, of Dover Street, who taught him artificial- 
flower making, and with whom he remained until his 
arrest. 

He was dressed very respectably, in a blue coat, 
lined, and edged, with buff, buff waistcoat, and black 
satin breeches. 

He was fully identified by the Misses Porter, Miss 
Frost, Miss Baughan, and Mrs. Franklin, whilst numer- 
ous ladies who had been wounded could not identify 
him. He was of course, remanded. Royalty, in the 
person of the Duke of Cumberland (afterwards King of 
Hanover), was present at his examination, and great 
difficulty was experienced in preserving the prisoner 
from the fury of the exasperated mob. 

On the 1 6th of June he was again brought up, was 
identified by two more ladies, and confronted with 
others, who could not be sure he was the man who had 
wounded them. The Dukes of York, and Cumberland, 
and Prince William of Gloucester, besides several peers, 
were present. 

He was brought before the magistrates once more, 




f^en otj'c^ UJJ//,a /ns.- //JO. 



Old Times. 257 

when another lady identified him, and he was committed 
for trial. 

Owing to the novelty of the crime, great difficulty was 
experienced as to his indictment, but it was at last 
settled that he should be tried under the statute 6th 
Geo. I. c. 23, s. 11, which made it felony, punishable 
with transportation, for seven years, to assault any 
person in the public streets, with intent to tear, spoil, 
cut, burn, or deface, the garments, or clothes, of such 
person, or persons, provided the act be done in pur- 
suance of such intention. 

On Thursday, the 8th of July, Williams was tried at 
the Old Bailey, before Mr. Justice Buller, charged with 
making an assault upon Ann Frost, spinster, on the 9th 
of November last, in Jermyn Street, St. James's, and 
wickedly, wilfully, and maliciously, tearing, and spoiling, 
her garments, to wit, the gown, petticoats, and shift, of 
the said Ann, against the statute in that case provided. 

He was also indicted for the commission of a similar 
offence in Holborn, on the 5th of May, on Sarah, the 
wife of John Davis. The same on Sarah, the wife of 
John Godfrey, on the 13th of May, in St. Marylebone. 
The 26th of September, on Mary Forster, in Maxwell 
Street. The 6th of December, on Elizabeth Baughan, 
in Parliament Street. For a like act, on the same day, 
in the same street, on Frances Baughan. For a like act, 
on Ann Porter, on the 18th of January, in St. James's 
Street. 

He pleaded not guilty, and was defended by counsel. 
The case of Miss Porter was then gone into, and the 
evidence, as already detailed, was adduced. For the 
defence, he called his master, Mr. Michell, who swore 
that he was at work till twelve, on the night of the 18th 

R 



258 Old Times. 

of January, and did not quit his house till after supper 
at half-past twelve, which was also substantiated by the 
witness of his sister, Miss Michell, Catherine, and Molly 
Harmond, and two of the workwomen, besides a customer: 
and ten witnesses were called as to character. The 
judge summed up very favourably for the prisoner, but 
the jury, without hesitation, found him guilty. The 
judge said, as this was a new case, and he had some 
doubts as to the indictment, he would respite judgment 
until he had laid the case before the twelve judges. So 
this, and the other indictments, were put off until the 
December Sessions. 

There were many accounts of the trial, and numerous 
portraits were published of Williams, who was by no 
means bad-looking, thin and pale, with powdered hair 
" en queue." 

The caricaturists took the matter up, nnd treated the 
matter as a joke, recommending ladies to have copper 
petticoats, &c. 

But the most awful picture is that of " The Monster 
going to take his afternoon luncheon," where he is de- 
picted as a terrible being about to devour a pretty girl — 
but the caricaturist shows us, kindly, " the Monster 
disappointed of his afternoon luncheon," in which engrav- 
ing, he has a double shot — one at the somewhat delicate 
subject of the " dress improver " of the day, and the 
other, how this fashion might be utilised to baffle the 
Monster of his intended meal. 

There was the usual newspaper correspondents' 
wrangle, in which, of course, it was unpopular to advance 
any argument in favour of the Monster. Indeed, The 
World, of October 16th, says: "Writing a defence of 
the Monster carries with it more serious consequences 




Brotcch'on from the MOHSTCf^. 



Old Times. 259 

than people are at first aware of, because it would appear 
as if publishing accounts, in the newspapers, or other- 
wise, could really justify atrocious acts. As Junius has 
said : ' The people at large are never mistaken in their 
sentiments, and, if they have formed an opinion, there 
is no taking them out of it by misrepresentation.' " That 
there was an opinion in his favour is not only evidenced 
by this, but at the City Debates, Capel Court, Bar- 
tholomew Lane, the question was debated on July 12 : 
" Did the late extraordinary conduct ascribed to Renwick 
Williams (commonly called the Monster) originate in an 
unfortunate insanity, a diabolical inclination to injure the 
fair part of the creation, or the groundless apprehension 
of some mistaken females ? " 

But the man kept up the feeling against him, by his 
own conduct, and could not be quiet in prison. The 
Oracle, of August the 20th, has the following account of 
" The Monster's Ball " : — " The depravity of the times 
was manifested last week, in an eminent degree, in 
Newgate. The Monster sent cards of invitation to 
about twenty couple, among whom were some of his 
alibi friends, his brother, sisters, several of the prisoners, 
and others, whom we shall take a future opportunity to 
notice. 

" At four o'clock the party sat to tea ; this being 
over, two violins struck up, accompanied by a flute, and 
the company proceeded to exercise their limbs. In the 
merry dance, the cuts, and entrechats, of the Monster 
were much admired, and his adroitness in that amusement 
must be interesting, from the school in which he acquired 
this branch of his accomplishments. 

" About eight o'clock the company partook of a cold 
supper, and a variety of wines, such as would not dis- 



260 Old Times. 

credit the most sumptuous gala, and about nine o'clock 
departed, that being the usual hour for locking the 
doors of the prison." 

Williams gradually faded away from public notice 
until early in November, when eleven of the judges met 
in Serjeants' Inn Hall, and consulted on his case, which 
had been reserved. The questions were : First, whether 
his having an intention to cut the person of Miss Porter, 
and, in carrying that intention into execution, cutting 
the garments of that lady, is an offence within the statute 
of 6th Geo. I. c. 23, s. 1 1, on which he was convicted ; 
the jury having, in their verdict, found that in cutting 
her person he had thereby an intention to cut her 
garments ? Secondly, whether the statute being in the 
conjunctive, " that if any person shall assault with an 
intent to cut the garment of such person, then the 
offender shall be guilty of felony," and the indictment, 
in stating the intention, not having connected it with the 
act by inserting the words that he " then and there " did 
cut her garment, could be supported in point of form ? 

Nine out of the eleven judges were of opinion that the 
offence, notwithstanding the finding of the jury, was not 
within the statute, and that the indictment was bad in 
point of law. 

This decision reduced the Monster's crime to a mis- 
demeanour. 

On Monday, December 13th, he was brought to trial 
at the Sessions House, Clerkenwell Green, and, as a 
proof of the interest it created, even the names of the 
jury are recorded. The trial began at ten, a.m., and was 
inaugurated by the prisoner reading a paper declaring 
his innocence. He was indicted for assaulting Miss 
Porter, with intent to kill, and murder her : there was a 



Old Times. 261 

second count which stated, that he, " holding a knife in 
his right hand, did wilfully give the said Ann Porter a 
dreadful wound, of great length and depth on the right 
thigh and hip ; to wit, of the length of nine inches, and 
the depth of four." A third count charged him with a 
common assault. The evidence was similar to that in 
the former trial, and, after a trial, lasting thirteen hours, 
he was found guilty. 

He was afterwards found guilty of other assaults, and 
was finally sentenced to two years' imprisonment in 
Newgate, for each assault on Miss Porter, Elizabeth 
Davis, and Miss E. Baughan, and at the end of the six 
years, he was to find bail for good behaviour for seven 
years, himself in the sum of two hundred pounds, and 
two sureties in one hundred pounds each. 

What finally became of him is not known. Mr. 
Angerstein offered the reward to Miss Porter, as it was 
by her instrumentality that the Monster was captured, 
but she refused it. 

The recollection of the Monster, did not quickly fade 
away, for we read in the Times, 20 Dec. 1799, "Another 
new Monster on Wednesday, made his appearance in 
town. His passion is for biting the Ladies' toes and 
finger ends. They say his name is Frost." 

Food riots, the natural outcome of an almost starving 
and ignorant population were rife ; but, in the following 
paragraph, there is a curious allusion, that the grain was 
intended to be shipped to France, with which nation we 
were then at war. 

" Several towns in Cornwall were last week visited by large 
bodies of Miners, from the different works, in search of con- 
cealed corn, which they insist upon is intended for exportation 



262 Old Times. 

to France. At Wadebridge, they found about 25,000 bushels 
in store, which they obliged the Owners to sell at reduced 
prices. At Looe upwards of 6000 bushels of grain were 
stopped by them from being shipped, but we do not hear of 
their committing any other outrage. Part of the first regiment 
of dragoons is gone from Devonshire, to assist the magistrates 
in restoring peace." — (Times, Feb. 6, 1793.) 

Highway robberies were of daily occurrence, so much 
so, that they are not worth chronicling, unless some 
special circumstance occurs in connection with them. 

"The pickpockets are all turned highwaymen. Thus far 
the metropolis has been delivered from these free-booters : and 
the relief is certainly owing to the new Police Bill." — (Times, 
March 9, 1793.) 

" At Oxford, a person was convicted of having robbed the 
Worcester and Oxford Coach, near Woodstock, of a portman- 
teau, and this peculiar circumstance attended it : — The man 
committed the offence, was taken, indicted, tried, and con- 
victed, within twelve hours after the commission of the crime. 
He was indicted for petty larceny only." — (Times, March 28, 
1793) 

" Mr. Burdon, the Member for the County of Durham, had 
25,000 guineas in his chaise when he was stopped, the other 
evening by footpads, who robbed him of 25 guineas only. 
Mr. Burdon was carrying down this sum, for the relief of the 
Durham Bank." — (Times, April 26, 1793.) 

A shocking trade had sprung up, which was not long 
in developing. As Science grew, so was a knowledge 
of Anatomy becoming of more vita} importance to the 
medical profession — but subjects for operation were 
scarce. True, those malefactors who were hanged, and 
had no friends, were given over to the Surgeons for 
dissection, but this means of supply, fell far short of the 
demand — which, however, was met, by the ghastly 



Old Times. 26 







device of robbing the grave-yards of their newly buried 
dead. Here are some contemporary records of the 
doings of these ghouls : — 

"Friday, a gang of persons, called Resurrection men, were 
apprehended between two, and three, o'clock in the morning, 
near the Churchyard at Hampstead ; they had dug up the 
body of a Mr. John Lloyd, who had been buried the day 
before, put it into a sack, and a hackney-coach was waiting to 
receive it ; but, by the vigilance, and resolution, of the watch- 
men, they lost their prey ; for, having stopt the coach, they 
found the body in it, and two men, whose names are Tom 
Paine, and Peter Mackintosh, together with their shovels, and 
tools, for opening the coffin. They were both carried before 
Master Montague, together with John Peach, the driver of the 
Coach, and were committed to gaol upon the fullest evidence. 
There were two others of the party, who made their escape. 
One of them had the appearance of a Gentleman, and is sup- 
posed to be a surgeon." — {Times, March 15, 1794.) 

" On Monday evening, a set of Resurrectionists, were appre- 
hended at a house near the Turnpike, Mile end. That morn- 
ing, a coach was observed to stop at this house, and an ill 
looking man came out of it with a sack, containing as it was 
supposed, a body, which he carried into the house, and returned 
immediately with a large hamper : — they then drove off to a 
neighbouring public-house, when, after a short stay, they took 
up some others, and were traced to the Launch, at Deptford. 
In the meantime, the parish officers were informed of the 
circumstance. About six in the evening, the coach again 
returned with a similar lading, which was deposited in the 
house. Some constables, accompanied by a number of people, 
surrounded the house, and forcing an entrance, they found two 
men, and a woman, drinking tea on a bench, at one end of 
which lay the bodies of two children. They were secured : 
and, on entering an adjoining room, the bodies of six adults 
were discovered, unmutilated ; besides which, the floor was 
strewed with limbs, in a state too shocking for public descrip- 
tion." — {Times, March 20, 1794.) 



264 Old Times. 

" A very particular account has been sent to this Paper, of 
the late shocking discovery of dead bodies at Mile-End : but 
we deem it unfit for publication, as the circumstances are too 
horrid to meet the public eye. Every room in the house was 
a scene of the most shocking brutality, and it is supposed there 
were upwards of 100 bodies, some whole, others mangled. 
The remains found at this house have since been removed to 
Bethnal Green church-yard, for a second interment. We most 
sincerely hope that his Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury 
will move for a bill in Parliament, making it death to rob a 
church yard." — {Times •, March 22, 1794.) 

(Adv.) "Robberies in Churchyards and Burial 
Grounds. 

"Some persons having been discovered, on the evening of 
the 8th February last, conveying dead Bodies in Sacks, from 
the Burial-Ground belonging to the Parish of St. Mary, Lambeth, 
and who, upon the alarm being raised, made their escape ; a 
reward of One hundred Pounds, for apprehending them, was 
immediately offered by the Churchwardens, to be paid upon 
their conviction : and the first opportunity was taken of 
assembling the Parishioners in Vestry, in order to consider by 
what means they might secure the offenders, bring them to 
punishment, and prevent, in future, such depredations. A 
Committee was accordingly appointed for this purpose, and 
discoveries of similar robberies in Church-yards, and Burial- 
grounds, in, and near, this Metropolis, have been made, the 
recital of which, together with an account of the horrid traffic in 
which many have been long engaged, with impunity, cannot fail 
to excite the indignation of the Public, and which it is intended, 
in a short time, to give them, taken from Affidavits made before 
Magistrates, and from other evidence procured on this melan- 
choly occasion. It will be needless to say, that the Relatives, 
and Friends, of those who have been lately buried there, before 
this discovery, have suffered great anguish of mind, and it is 
not doubted but that all will concur in adopting measures, 
which may effectually check such abominable practices. For 
this desirable end, an application to Parliament, early in the 
next Session, is deemed highly necessary, as, at present, the 



Old Times. 265 

punishment is found to be by no means sufficient to prevent 
the crime. The Parishes therefore, within the Bills of Mor- 
tality, and near London, will, it is hoped, approve of such 
application, and it is intended that a Circular Letter shall be 
sent to them, to invite them to join in it. In the meantime, 
the Committee of the Parish of Saint Mary, Lambeth, will be 
glad to receive any communications from any other Parishes, 
on this subject, under cover, directed to Thomas Swabey, 
Vestry Clerk, Lambeth." — {Times, April 21, 1794.) 

" Early on Tuesday Morning, some suspicion being enter- 
tained that the Pesthouse burial-ground, in Old-Street-Road, 
had been frequently violated, the parish watchmen were 
ordered to keep a good look out, when a hackney coach 
was observed, waiting near the spot. Upon the watchman's 
approaching it, he was assaulted, and beaten, by three men, 
who then made off : but afterwards, springing his rattle, the 
assistants took the coachman into custody, who had three 
sacks in his coach, two of them containing the body of a man 
each, and the other, three children. Several other bodies, 
which had been dug up for the purpose of carrying away, 
were found under the wall of the burying-ground : and, it is 
generally believed, that almost all the bodies deposited there- 
in, for 5 weeks past, have been stolen, which, upon an average, 
must have been 15 per week. The hackney-coachman, who 
owned he was to have had ten guineas for his night's fare, was 
committed to the New Prison, Clerkenwell. This fellow, it 
should seem, was hardened to his business : for, though put 
into the cage with the bodies he was carrying off, he slept so 
sound, that it was with some difficulty he was awakened by 
the visit of a brother-whip, previous to his going before a 
Magistrate." — {Times, Dec. 23, 1796.) 

Sentence of death was passed on Criminals for 
offences we should now think totally inadequate to that 
punishment — but although sentenced, those convicted 
of the lighter offences — were almost all respited, and 
transported for life. 



266 Old Times. 

"At the Assizes for York and County, the following prisoners 
received sentence of death, viz., T. Jewitt, for stealing four 
heifers : Saml. Bathurst, for privately stealing in a shop ; 
Wm. Atkinson, and Hannah Hobson, for riotously assembling 
and pulling down the house of John Cooper, of Whitby : John 
Holt and Richard Watson, for house breaking, and three others 
for sheep-stealing." — {Times, March 30, 1793.) 

" A petition from Wm. Brunskill, (commonly called Jack 
Ketch) was presented to the Court of Aldermen, stating that 
he was the public executioner, and, on that account, could not 
get any other employment : that he was obliged to keep an 
assistant, though his allowance was so small, and his income 
so trifling, as to be insufficient to maintain himself, and family, 
and praying relief. — The Court referred the same to the 
Sheriffs." — {Times, Jan. 30, 1794.) 

The next paragraph, which is very brief, tells its own 
story. 

"There is now a man confined for debt in Newgate, who 
has been a prisoner there, over fifteen years, for a debt, the 
original sum of which does not exceed forty-five shillings." — 
(Times, April 25, 1793.) 

In Dec. 1794, and Jan. 1795, there was a terrible 
frost — and, in the latter month, wc hear that seven men, 
attempting to pass over the ice, to a Collier, by Rat- 
cliffe Highway — were drowned — and how — two days 
afterwards — two watchmen were frozen to death at 
Bloomsbury. Hard indeed must have been the lot of 
the poor debtors, and we may fancy the anxious scrutiny 
of the box, which the debtor whose turn it was, would 
rattle outside the bars of Ludgate, making the while his 
monotonous, and melancholy, whine, " Pity the poor 
debtors ; pity the poor debtors." Some hearts were 
softened towards them, and they were sensibly grateful 
for such seasonable assistance. 



Old Times. 267 

"Advt.— The unfortunate DEBTORS in LUDGATE 
PRISON beg leave, thus publicly, to return their grateful 
Thanks to LADY TAYLOR, of Spring Gardens, for her 
munificent Benefaction of 149 lbs. of Beef, 21 half Peck 
Loaves, 21 sacks of Coals, and 66 lbs. of Cheese, each 
Article being of the best quality. 

" At the same time, they entreat the LORD MAYOR to 
accept their unfeigned Thanks, for his kind present of a 
Guinea, which was equally divided among the unfortunate 
Debtors. 

" N.B. The smallest Benefaction from their fellow Citizens 
and other liberal minded persons, will at all times be thankfully 
received, particularly at this inclement season of the year." — 
{Times, Dec. 29, 1794.) 

"The unfortunate DEBTORS, in Ludgate Prison, beg leave 
to return their grateful Thanks, to the Right Hon. the LORD 
MAYOR, for 448 lbs. of Beef and Mutton of the best sort, 
which he has sent them since the 10th day of Nov., also for 
two Chaldron, and an half, of Coals sent yesterday." — {Times, 
Jan. 1, 1795.) 

" As the Debtor and Creditor Bill comes on to-morrow, 
it is recommended to its noble framer, to try the pulse of the 
Law Lords, by introducing a clause which shall interdict the 
Marshal of the King's Bench, and the Warden of the Fleet, 
from taking a shilling per week from each debtor for his bed, 
unless as the very foundation, and cause of this fee originally 
was, that the Keeper of the Prison furnishes the Debtor with 
furniture to the amount of £30. The Keepers have very 
handsome salaries, and therefore, there should be no exactions 
from the prisoners. Indeed the nature of their imprisonment 
interdicts such a practice, for how is the insolvent man to find 
money? ex-nihilo, nihil fit." — {Times, May 8, 1793.) 

" Were any one Lord in the House of Peers to move that 
the Royal Assent to Acts of Parliament should be given in 
plain English, and not in old Norman French, the House 
would unanimously adopt the idea of banishing, in future, the 
barbarous language of that Country." — {Times, May 10, 1793.) 



268 Old Times. 

" A curious matter was heard yesterday before the Borough 
Police, respecting the wife of a gentleman at Sheerness, who 
had eloped with a black servant. They were pursued to the 
Nags Head in the Borough on Sunday, where Blackey fired 
a pistol at his pursuers, for which he was taken up and 
committed. The Lady had two children by her husband. 
The matter, we understand is made uj>." — (Times, Feb. n, 
I794-) 

"The manner in which the Black business was settled, in 
the Borough, was this : — The husband took her two children, 
and all the property he found in the coach, desired his wife to 
go where she pleased, (after she said she'd live with no one 
but the Black) and Mungo was taken by a press gang, and 
put on board the tender." — {Times, Feb. 12, 1794.) 

" Monday last two Bailiffs followers made a seizure for rent 
at a house in Kingswood, near Bristol : an alarm being given, 
they were surrounded by a number of colliers, who conveyed 
them to a neighbouring coal-pit, and let them down, where 
they were suffered to remain till about two the next morning, 
when they were had up, and, each having a glass of gin, and 
some gingerbread, given him, were immersed again into the 
dreary bowels of the earth, where they were confined, in all, 
near twenty four hours. On being released they were made 
to pay a fine of 6s. 8d. each, for their lodging, and take an oath 
never to trouble, or molest, any of them again." — {Times, 
April 25, 1795.) 

"The friends of an apprentice to a stocking-weaver, at 
Lambeth, brought the lad to this office (Public Office, Bow 
St.) to shew one of the modes of punishment adopted by the 
master, when the boys committed any fault. It consisted of 
an iron collar, fastened round the neck, by a padlock. The 
lad said that he had worn it for above a month, and that he 
understood it was his master's intention he should wear it till 
he was out of his time. The master living in the county of 
Surrey, Mr Bond could not interfere in the business, but 
advised the parties to go to Union-Hall, in the Borough. The 
master of the apprentice alluded to, we understand, has got 



Old Times. 269 

between 60 and 70 boys, most of whom he has had from the 
different workhouses in the county of Surrey." — (Times, 
Aug. 27, 1795.) 

" Owing to the high price of victualling, the demand for 
shipping and risque of capture, or the price of insurance, the 
contract for conveying the last convicts from Great Britain, 
and Ireland, to Botany Bay, was ^80 per man ; and the ex- 
pence exceeding all the good that could arise to either country, 
from the banishment, or the evil that could arise from the 
continuance in either country, of the miscreants. 

" It is a known fact, that so far are the miscreants, who 
usually come under sentence of transportation, from consider- 
ing it a punishment, that they laugh at the joke, and consider 
it a very great benefit. — Adventurous spirits like those, averse 
to all manner of industry, insensible to ignominy, and totally 
unconscious of any such feelings as the amor patriot, delight 
in nothing more, than shifting the scene, and being conveyed 
to a distant country, from that in which they have no hope of 
existing, but at the perpetual risk of the gallows. 

" It is more than probable that severe flagellation, such as 
military codes prescribe, would prove infinitely more formid- 
able in detering villainy : and it is, at least, worth the experi- 
ment of a statute, which costs nothing, to try whether the 
penalty of 500, or 1000 lashes, which would not cost the 
country one shilling, would not prove a stronger barrier against 
larcenies, and clergyable felonies, than transportation to Botany 
Bay, at the enormous expense of ^60 or 80 per man, which 
operates in reality as a heavy penalty on the Republic of- 
honest men, and a bounty on villainy. Besides, have we not 
copper mines, coal mines, canals, and other such places of 
employment, at home, for those criminals, which, at present, 
alienate the husbandmen, and honest labourers of the country, 
from the business of agriculture. The labour of criminals, in 
this way, would prove a benefit to the country, and some 
compensation to the State, their crimes had injured." — (Times, 
Sept. 9, 1795.) 

"The Calamities of War. Amongst the distresses it has 
occasioned, it is a lamentable fact, that five Attornies have 



270 Old Times. 

been deprived of an honest livelihood, and have actually 
entered as foremast men, on board a frigate in the Thames." 
— {Times, Nov. 2, 1795.) 

"The Lord Chancellor was occupied on Friday, and 
Saturday, with hearing an important cause. Earl Pomfret v. 
Sir Ch. Turner. 

" It respects a very valuable lead mine, in the vale of Arking- 
hall, Yorkshire. Such is the expedition of our laws, that this 
cause has lasted only ninety three years, being first instituted in 
the year 1703 ! ! !" — {Times, Apr. 12, 1796.) 

" The King v. Middleton. 

"The defendant was convicted of enticing a number of 
Artificers from this country, to go to Kentucky in America ; 
a rule was afterwards obtained, to shew cause why the judg- 
ment should not be arrested, for reasons, which appeared 
insufficient to the Court. That Rule therefore, was dis- 
charged, and the Defendant received judgment according to 
the Statute, that is, he was ordered to pay a fine of £500, and 
to be confined in Newgate for the space of one year." — {Times, 
June 10, 1796.) 

" On Saturday John Paviour (one of these persons called 
Bullock Hunters) was tried at the Old Bailey — for driving a 
bullock out of Smithfield Market, early on the morning of 
the 23rd May last and was found guilty — death. It is hoped 
therefore, that this prosecution will greatly check, if not wholly 
put an end to that pernicious practice, by which not only the 
Property, but the lives of the Public are so much endangered, 
in and about this metropolis." — {Times, June 28, 1796.) 

" The trial which was to have come on at the Assizes in 
York, concerning estates in Cleveland, for which a Special 
Jury was to be summoned, of four Knights, and their twelve 
Esquires, girt with swords, is deferred until next Assizes." — 
{Times, July 27, 1796.) 

"Yesterday, a Jew was convicted at the Public Office 
Bow Street, for selling a hat, in the street, without a stamped 



Old Times. 271 

lining, contrary to the late Act of Parliament, and was 
sentenced to be imprisoned for two months, in the House of 
Correction. Hatters selling Hats, without a stamped lining, 
are liable to the penalty of £xo. In the above case, im- 
prisonment is the only mode of punishment." — (Times, Sept. 
3, 1796.) 

" Certainly the number of Lawyers, which is only computed 
to be 20,000 in Great Britain, is not so much their fault, as 
our own. We can neither marry, nor die, without them : but 
then there is no living for them." — (Times, Sept. 28, 1796.) 

" The number of Attornies posted up for admission next 
term, outside the Court of King's Bench, are eighty-two. 
Surely some stop should be put to this growing evil, for there 
is not a doubt, but that, with an increase of Attornies, must 
consequently follow an increase of litigation. For where the 
numbers surpass all reasonable bounds, they will have re- 
course to the most desperate means to excite business." — 
(Times, Jan. 31, 1 797.) 

"The convict who was lately executed at Leicester, and 
who adopted the singular mode of travelling, in a post chaise, 
to the place of execution, was no less remarkable for his 
crimes, than a copious fund of low humour. He got the 
following notice put up in the most frequented houses in 
the town, 'Wanted an agreeable companion, in a post chaise, 
to go a journey of considerable length, and upon equal terms. 
Enquire for particulars at the Castle.' It is almost super- 
fluous to mention that upon the terms being made known, the 
gentleman could not find a partner." — (Times, Sept. 8, 1797.) 

The following is a somewhat curious Police Case 
(Times, Jan. 17, 1798) : " Robert Richards, and William 
Packer, were indicted on a charge of assaulting Ryan 
Thackars, on the 30th of December, and robbing him 
of half a guinea, a 7s. piece, and is. 6d., in silver, 
his property. 

"■ The Prosecutor was a Jew, and a common informer, 



272 Old Times. 

in which character he had gone, on the above mentioned 
day, to the Fleet Prison, to serve the wife of Mr. 
Richards, with a notice to answer to an information 
for wearing hair powder without a licence. On his 
serving the Notice, Mr. Richards called him back, but 
he refusing to return, the other assaulted him, threw 
him down upon his back, said he knew him very well, 
that he was a damned informer, and that he should be 
pumped. Then the two Prisoners dragged him to the 
pump, and, with the assistance of others, kept pouring 
water upon him, for a quarter of an hour. A pail of 
water was afterwards thrown, by somebody, on his 
face. His clothes were all torn : and, when they let 
him go, he missed his money. Being asked by the 
Court if he could charge the Prisoners with having 
robbed him, he answered he could not ; nor was the 
money found on them-when apprehended. The Recorder 
then told the Jury, that as no charge was made out against 
the prisoners, they must acquit them. — Not Guilty" 

"BASE COIN FINISHED AT NEWGATE. 

" A very singular circumstance occurred a few days ago at 
the gaol of Newgate : One of the Magistrates of Police having 
received information that a person of the name of Pullen, a 
notorious offender who was sentenced to a year's imprison- 
ment for dealing in base money, had been carrying on his 
former trade, while in confinement : that the base money of the 
similitude of a shilling, being previously prepared of blanched 
copper, with King William's head faintly impressed on one 
side, and plain on the other, was brought into the prison 
privately by Agents whom he employed : that after the Cells 
were locked up, this adroit Coiner prepared a liquid in which 
very thin pieces of silver were mixed, which, being rubbed 
upon the Copper shillings, instantly give them the appear- 
ance of worn down coin of the Mint : that he was assisted 
in the operation by several of the prisoners in the same ward, 



Old Times. 273 

some of whom were his associates in iniquity, and convicted 
of offences against the Mint Laws : That his customers came 
regularly to the prison, and purchased the base money so 
finished at two for one, paying sixpence for each shilling, 
although intrinsically not worth a halfpenny : that the dies, 
and some other implements for coining belonging to these 
delinquents, had been actually lodged in their trunks at New- 
gate, and they were brought there privately, on every alarm 
of danger from officers of justice, as a place of greater security. 
This information having been communicated to Sir William 
Staines, one of the present Sheriffs of London and Middlesex, 
with the zeal for the public good which characterises the 
active Magistrate, he went alone to Newgate, early in the 
morning, before the celis were unlocked, and caused the 
trunks, and boxes, belonging to the persons convicted of 
offences against the Mint Laws, to be searched; and, in a 
trunk concealed under Pullers bed, were found no less than 
£107, 2s. of base money, of the similitude of shillings, ready 
for circulation, and a machine for rounding, or milling, the 
edges of half crowns ; and in another trunk belonging to an 
associate of Pullen, were found two plain dies, and two others 
for halfpence, and farthings. It would appear that some other 
dies for halfcrowns, and shillings, which had been deposited 
for some time in a trunk belonging to Pullen, were removed, 
together with the book he kept for entering the names of his 
customers who visited him, for the purpose of purchasing base 
money for the town, and country, circulation. . . . The Lord 
Mayor and Sheriffs have investigated the means by which 
these nefarious practices have been carried on, and, we are 
happy to learn, that it arose entirely from the arts, and devices, 
so familiar to criminals, without the knowledge, or privity, of 
the Turnkeys. The result is, that the Lord Mayor and 
Sheriffs are taking immediate steps for establishing such 
rules, as will probably prevent a repetition of the same evil." 
— (Times, Nov. 29, 1796.) 

PRIZE FIGHTING AND DUELS. 

Prize fighting was beginning to develop into a fine 

art, and it was thought no more derogatory in a fine 

s 



274 Old Times. 

gentleman to assist, by his presence, at a " Mill," than 
to be present at a Cock fight. It was patronised by 
Royalty, as we see by the following Newspaper Cutting. 
Indeed, the Prince of Wales attended several prize fights, 
until a man was killed, and then he left the ring to itself. 

"On Friday, a battle was fought at Blackheath between 
Crabbe, a Jew, and Oliver, commonly called Death; in 
which the former was victorious. All the great patrons, and 
distinguished professors of this fine art were present, and 
many bets were laid. The battle was honoured, in particular, 
by the attendance of his Royal Highness the Prince of 
Wales." — (Momi?ig Post, April 18, 1788.) 

Even those " feeble folk," those superfine gentlemen, 
the Macaronis, learned to use their fists, as we see by 
this illustration. 

Any one caring for such particulars will well know 
that this was the golden age for pugilism. There were 
Tom Johnson, 1783— 1791. Benjamin Brain (Big Ben), 
1 786- 1 79 1. Daniel Mendoza, a Jew, 1784- 1820. 
Richard Humphries, " the Gentleman boxer," 1784- 1790. 
John Jackson, 1788-1795. Bill Hooper (the Tin man), 
1789-1797. Tom Owen, 1796- 1799- 18 20. Tom Jones 
(Paddington Jones), 1786- 1805. Bill Warr (of Bristol), 
1787-1792. Will Wood, the Coachman, 1788-1804. 
George Ingleston, the Brewer, 1 789-1793. Bob Watson, 
of Bristol, 1788-1791. Tom Tyne, "the Tailor," 1788- 
1792. Symonds (the Ruffian), 1791-1795. Jem Belcher, 
1798— 1809. This is the list of the Chief Gladiators of 
the period. 

"Mendoza's terms for teaching are reasonable enough — 
eight lessons for a guinea." — {Morning Post, May 26, 1788.) 

"Mendoza and Ward, finding that the blackguard exercise 
of boxing had fallen into disrepute, took up the genteel trade 




29 



» 



"I 



s 



4 



Old Times. 275 

of crimping, and became acting Serjeants, at a house in St. 
George's Fields, until a stop was put to that nefarious business 
by authority. We are sorry to find that these notorious 
blackguards have since returned to their former occupation." 
— (Times, April 16, 1795.) 

Duels were of as common occurrence, as highway 
robberies, and need as much comment. Still, I give 
two, or three, instances to show on what trifles, men, 
then, ventured their lives. 

The first is an ordinary duel between two officers, 
reported in the Morning Post of 22nd June 1788 — in 
which one of them was wounded in the thigh. This 
report brings a letter from some one, probably a second, 
who gives his version thus : — " Sir, in your account of 
the duel between Captains Tonge and Paterson, in your 
Paper of the 22nd, there is a mistake or two, which, for 
the sake of truth, I beg leave to correct. You say, 
' that Capt. T. wished to apologise for the injury he had 
done. 1 The truth is, Captain T. being not quite himself 
when the affray happened, remembered very little of 
what had passed, except that, on some provocation, he 
had struck Capt. P. Considering himself, therefore, as 
having, palpably broken the peace, he was ready to ask 
Capt. P/s pardon. 

" This was not deemed sufficient satisfaction, and the 
duel took place. You tell us, that Capt. T.'s ball passed 
Capt. P., thereby implying that Capt. T. actually fired at 
his antagonist. Now, Sir, I can positively affirm that 
Capt. T. was determined not to fire his pistol, and that 
it was involuntarily discharged, after he was wounded, 
and not levelled at Capt. P. You tell us then, that Capt. 
T., upon falling, declared that ' he had merited his fate, 
and begged Capt. P.'s pardon. 1 His words wert, Are you 



276 Old Times. 

satisfied ? I fear I am dangerously wounded, I therefore 
advise you to fly. 

" To enable the Public to judge properly of this affair, 
it is necessary they should be told, that the first offence 
was, Capt. T.'s treading accidentally on Capt. P.'s heel, 
who, though he saw Capt. T. was intoxicated, continued 
to follow him. Rich. Weeks." 

"Captain Parkhurst and a Mr. Kelly, are the names 
of the gentlemen who exchanged blows at the Opera House 
on Saturday evening." — (Times, March 11, 1794-) 

"On Sunday morning a duel was fought in Hyde Park 
between Mr. Parkhurst and Lieut. Kelly of the Navy. 
The dispute originated in some difference about places at the 
Opera pit on the preceding night. A brace of pistols was 
discharged, and the latter gentleman wounded in the shoulder. 
The seconds then interfered, and brought the matter to a 
termination." — (Times, March 13, 1794.) 

"Friday morning a duel was fought in a field on the 
Uxbridge Road, between Mr. Duke, surgeon, and Captain 

D s, in consequence of an old dispute revived a few 

nights ago in the Haymarket Theatre. The parties discharged 
a brace of pistols without effect, but upon Mr. D. discharging 
his second pistol, a ball was lodged in Capt. D.'s arm — upon 
which the seconds interfered, and a reconciliation took place." 
— (Times, Feb. 18, 1793.) 

FRENCH EMIGRANTS. 

We have seen how, at the outbreak of the French 
Revolution, the French came over here in thousands — 
escaping here as to a haven of refuge. For the most part 
they were of the better class ; still there were, as in 1870, 
a large number of very suspicious characters (to use the 
mildest term) among them — and the government was 
compelled to keep a very jealous eye on their movements. 



Old Times. 277 

Taken, however, as a whole, they behaved wonderfully 
well, and in no ways abused the asylum, and protection, 
they had sought. 

"Government is ridding the country very fast of Jacobins : 
and in doing so, it is taking only a proper precaution during a 
time of war. Some hundreds have been already either expelled, 
or have quitted the country through apprehension ; but many 
more still remain here : and we recommend very strongly to 
the notice of the Police Department, the general body of 
French Dancing Masters practising in London, who are the 
veriest Jacobins in existence. An exportation of some of these 
Hop Merchants, and certain French Milliners, whom we could 
name, might be permitted without a drawback, and without 
doing any injury to the Revenue." — (Times, Feb. 15, 1793.) 

"The Maitre £ Hotel of the Duke of York was, on Saturday 
last, ordered to quit the country. We some time since remarked 
that there were several rank Jacobins in his Royal Highness's 
household." — [Times, Feb. 16, 1793.) 

He was sent out of the Country either for theft or 
embezzlement. 

" The Jermyn-Street Gun, which is filled with combustible 
matter, should be unloaded, and spiked, or it may become 
more dangerous than it is even at present. A clause ought to 
be added to the Alien Bill, interdicting Frenchmen to meet, 
either in public, or private, houses, in a greater number than 
5, at one and the same time. We cannot be too strict at this 
moment : and, being sojourners here, as objects of public 
bounty, they cannot complain of any regulations which Govern- 
ment may deem necessary to make." — {Times, Feb. 16, 1793.) 

"The French Emigrants. 1 

" Some of the papers have circulated very idle reports rela- 
tive to the arrival, in London, of 140 French soldiers; the story 

1 On March 6, there was a letter from the agents of the owners of the 
ship, putting a different complexion on the matter : the mutinous conduct 
of the emigrants being the cause of all the trouble. 



278 Old Times. 

is precisely as follows : These unfortunate Emigrants, most of 
them descended from opulent, and illustrious, families in 
France, having saved \ themselves, with the French Princes, 
from the daggers of assassins, were necessitated, at the end of 
the campaign, to enter the service of Spain. They embarked, 
on the 4th Dec, at Bois le Due, for Rotterdam, and from 
thence, they sailed in the ship David and Abraham, commanded 
by Captain Riendirk. It would be impossible to describe the 
bad usage they received on board. Obliged to lay upon the 
bare deck, without a bed, and fed with mouldy biscuit, and 
beer, mixed with salt water ; in this lamentable situation they 
remained five weeks. These miserable men were covered 
with vermin, most of them, dreadfully galled with sores, and 
ulcers. Some had not changed their linen for two years and an 
half : others had no linen of any kind, and the clothes of the 
whole troop were in tatters. There is reason to believe that 
the Captain of the vessel proposed to sell them as malefactors, 
to be sent to Batavia. The ship, however, was driven on our 
coast, and as soon as our Government was apprized that these 
poor men were at anchor in Sheerness, they took every measure 
to soften the rigour of their fate. Two of their countrymen 
were dispatched to bring them to London. The barbarous 
inhumanity of the Dutch Captain was notoriously conspicuous, 
and we hope some measures will be taken to bring him to 
justice, and make him an example to others, to avoid similar 
acts of inhumanity." — {Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) 

"It is said that Lord Moira, notwithstanding the strange 
part he acts in domestic politics, distributes the amount of 
jQ 1 0,000 annually amongst the French Emigrants, who are 
only known to him by their distresses." — (Times, Dec. 27, 
I797-) 

A French Emigrant was, yesterday, examined before Mr. 
Ford, at the Duke of Portland's Office, on a charge of being a 
Spy. The circumstances adduced were on the information of 
a Journeyman Shoemaker, against his Master, a Mr. Deboo, 
for making a pair of boots with a Cavity between the Soles ; 
covered with sheet lead to prevent the wet perforating, for 
letters of a secret nature. After a long examination, it was 



Old Times. 279 

proved that he was employed by the Duke d'Harcourt, on a 
mission to the officers of his corps in Germany, and, his papers 
containing nothing improper, he was discharged : but, the 
maker of the boots having been, for some time, considered a 
disaffected person, is to be sent out of the Kingdom under the 
Alien Bill."— (Times, Jan. 6, 1798.) 

" In order to obtain a correct information of all the 
Foreigners who reside in this vast metropolis, and whose 
numbers are said to amount to 80,000, and upwards, Govern- 
ment has ordered the parish Officers to go from house, to 
house, and to take down the name of any foreigner who resides 
in the parish. This measure, we conceive, would become 
still more efficacious, if every landlord, or tenant, of a house, 
who lets out lodgings, were obliged to inform the Justice of 
the Peace, of every Foreigner who comes to lodge in his 
house, or leaves it. None but suspicious persons will have to 
complain of the severity of these measures." — {Times, March 
n, 1797,) 



280 Old Times. 



POLITICAL. 

With Politics I had no intention of dealing, but the book 
would be incomplete if there were no indication of the 
party strife of the period, so that I have been tempted to 
make a few extracts principally of 1793-4, when party 
spirit ran very high. The revelations as to Elections, 
will, probably, somewhat astonish the next generation. 

" The Marquis of Lansdowne's carriage conveyed the whole 
phalanx of opposition, in the house of Lords, to their respec- 
tive homes, after the debate of Friday night : and even then, 
one corner of the coach was unoccupied. 

"The opposition in the Commons, who are a little more 
numerous, were all bundled into Mr. Fox's coach, and that of 
Michael Angelo Turner, with the assistance of a hackney- 
coach for Jack Courtney, and Jekyll. 

" Opposition, sunk to a minority that is insignificant in the 
extreme, was afraid to try the question, on Friday, in either 
House, well knowing that they could not reckon more than a 
dozen, in the Commons, and three in the House of Lords. 
Must not this convince the French of the unanimity of the 
people of England?" — (Times, Feb. 4, 1793.) 

"All the Members of the Opposition, in both Houses of 
Parliament, are to have a grand civic feast on Saturday next. 
Dinner is bespoke for fourteen! ! !" — (Times, Feb. 5, 1793.) 

" The Irish papers are full of information of indictments on 
the part of the Crown, against the printers of newspapers in 
Ireland. Thirty or forty names are mentioned in one of the 
latest Gazettes from thence." — (Times, Feb. 6, 1793.) 



Old Times. 281 

COUNTY OF LEICESTER.— Dec. 19, i79 2 - 
"It appearing to be the unanimous opinion of all true 
friends of the Constitution, that, in order to prevent the mis- 
chievous consequences attending a misrepresentation of their 
sentiments, either at home, or abroad, some public avowal of 
their principles is become necessary ; We, whose names are 
hereunto subscribed, adopting the resolutions of the Society, 
at the Saint Alban's Tavern, do hereby declare, that we are 
unanimously, and decidedly, of opinion, that, for the security 
and happiness of all classes of our fellow-subjects, for the 
maintenance of our own rights, and liberties, and, for the 
dearest interests of our posterity, it is, in the present moment, 
incumbent upon us to give to the Executive Government, a 
vigorous, and effectual, support, in counteracting the numerous 
efforts of sedition, in detecting, and bringing to legal punish- 
ment, the persons concerned therein, and in suppressing, in their 
beginning, all tumults, or riots, on whatever pretence they 
may be excited : do hereby publicly declare our determination 
to take all such steps for these purposes, as are within the 
limits of our duty, in the several stations in which the Con- 
stitution of our country has placed us, and to afford, by our 
individual exertions, that active assistance to the authority of 
the lawful Magistrate, and to the maintenance of the Estab- 
lished Government, which is at all times due from the subject 
of this realm; but which we feel to be more particularly 
necessary, under the circumstances of the present time. 

" For these purposes, and to this intent, we are resolved, and 

do declare — 

1. "That we will jointly, and individually, use our utmost 
endeavours to discover the Authors, Publishers, and Distri- 
butors, of all Seditious Writings, which shall be published, and 
distributed, within the County of Leicester, and particularly, all 
persons who shall be engaged in any illegal Associations, or Con- 
spiracies, for the Publication, and Distribution, of such writings, 
or for the exciting Tumults, and Riots, within the said County. 

2. "That, in order to carry the above resolutions into effect, 
we do hereby, mutually, bind ourselves to each other, that 
whenever it shall come to our Knowledge, that any person, or 
persons, have, within the said County, Published, or Distributed, 



282 Old Times. 

Seditious Writings, or engaged themselves in such Associations, 
or Conspiracies, for the purposes aforesaid, we will do our 
utmost endeavours to put the laws strictly in force against him, 
or them. 

3. " That we will, on every occasion, exert ourselves, on the 
first appearance of Tumult, or Disorder, to maintain the public 
peace, and to act in support of the civil authority, for suppress- 
ing all Riots, and for bringing the promoters of them to legal 
punishment. 

" Those who agree in the principles here stated, are invited 
to set their names to this Declaration — Copies of which will 
be sent, for that purpose, to every town, and village, in the 
county, at the Banks of Boultbee & Co., and Bensley & 
Co., in Leicester, and at the Post Offices, in the several 
Market Towns of the county, Subscriptions will be received, 
from such persons, as may be willing to contribute, towards 
defraying the expenses, which may be incurred in carrying into 
execution the measures here stated, and in counteracting the 
mistaken, and pernicious, notions which are so industriously 
circulated." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) 

"ST. MARY, ISLINGTON, Mitre Tavern, opposite the 
Church, Jan. 23. We, the undersigned, being PUBLICANS 
within this Parish, from a sense of duty we owe to the present 
Constitution, and Government of this country ; and, having 
a desire to preserve to the utmost of our Power, Peace, and 
Good Order, by preventing the assembling of Persons as 
Societies, or Clubs, for seditious purposes, in our several 
Houses — have this day met, and resolved, and, by this, do 
pledge ourselves, to give immediate Information to the Com- 
mittee appointed at the Church, on the 8th Day of Dec. last, 
for the preservation of the Public Peace, &c, of any Person, 
or Persons, making use of disloyal Expressions or otherwise 
offending against the Peace of the Parish, whereby he, or 
they, may be brought to Punishment for the same. Agreed, 
That this Resolution be signed by as many Publicans within 
this Parish, as shall approve the same, and that it may be 
advertised in the daily Papers. 

" N.B. — The signatures contain the whole Number of Publi- 
cans in this Parish." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) 



Old Times. 283 

"It is rather extraordinary, that the Whig Clud should 
forget to drink the Duke of Portland's health last Tuesday, 
and the House of Cavendish. There was a time, when the 
Whig Club was respectable; but that is over, and perhaps 
never to return. The last meeting was a-la-mode D'Egalite." 
—{Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) 

"As the Members of the National Convention are so 
very fond of Pain, it cannot be deemed unfeeling to ex- 
press a sincere wish that they all felt it."— (Times, Feb. 7, 

I793-) 

" Lady Dover's house, it is confidently said, was set on fire 
by a Frenchman. The person's name has been publicly men- 
tioned. What may, and must, surprise a number of Britons 
is, that in most of the late Opposition families of eminence, 
the principal servants are Frenchmen : — and it is necessary to 
make public, that these foreigners, under the roofs of those 
who give them bread, utter the most treasonable blasphemies 
against the present Government of this country. _ As some 
new tax may be requisite, to assist the necessary resources of 
Government, a most heavy impost on French servants would 
be extremely popular. The Steward, the Butler, the Cook, 
the Valet, and the rest of the principal servants in one of the 
first families of Opposition, are French. Does this accord 
with national friendship?" — {Times, Feb. 8, 1793.) 

" There are no patriotic gifts now made for carrying on the 
war in France! — no bodkins, scissors, thimbles, rings, and 
necklaces! The Army is left to shift for itself: and, if they 
cannot plunder a day's subsistence, they must fast."— {Times, 
Feby. 9, 1793.) 

" In the year 1782, when Mr. Fox gave notice of motion on 
the state of the nation, the House was filled at an early hour 
to an overflow. But on a similar notice, from the same 
person, in 1793, there were not sufficient Members to make a 
House, and the Speaker adjourned to next day. Tempora 
mutantur." — {Times, Feb. 9, 1793.) 



284 Old Times. 

" QUERIES. 

" Why is opposition like a stumbling horse ? 

Because it is broken down. 

Why is Lord Lansdowne like a man with the gout ? 

Because his mind is engrossed by Paine. 

Why is the National Assembly of France like a Croco- 
dile? 

Beeause it deceives, in order to destroy. 

Why is Mr. Courtney like an apothecary's bill ? 

Because he is ditto repeated on all occasions. 

Why is Mr. Erskine like the first two words of the begin- 
ning of the Eclogues of Virgil ? 

Because he commences with llle Ego. 

Why is Michael Angelo Taylor like a barrel organ ? 

Because any person can play upon him. 

Why is Lord Courtney like Narcissus ? 

Because he is in love with himself. 

Why is Mrs. Sturt like a young kitten ? 

Because she is fond of play. 

Why is the Club at Brookes 's like cannibals ? 

Because they prey one upon another. 

Why is Mrs. Siddons like the late Sir Joshua Reynolds? 

Because she deceives the public into a belief that art is 
nature. 

Why is Lord Wycombe an advocate for peace ? 

Because his father made nothing until he put an end to 
the war. 

Why are the Members of Opposition like the live stock of 
a Register Office ? 

Because they want places." — {Times, Feb. 9, 1793.) 

" In days of yore, Lady Wallace would have been burnt 
for a witch from the prophecies, now verified, which she 
published a year ago, in a letter to her son : — She foretold 
that the Prince would soon throw off the corrupt ministers to 
his youthful pleasures, and shew himself the protector of that 
happy Government, which alone can insure the wealth, free- 
dom, and glory, of England ! She says, " he will emerge in 
all the splendour which attends the noon-day sun, after having 



Old Times. 285 

dispersed the clouds exhaled from foul vapours beneath 
him." She foretold that the united forces would not succeed 
in their attack upon France : that England must inevitably 
be speedily involved in war, from the convulsed state of the 
Continent : — She said, that if foreign Powers would take no 
hostile part against the French, that they would prey like 
wolves upon each other, and do more towards a Counter- 
revolution, by their frenzy being vented in internal discord, 
than all Europe would ever force them to do. It was her 
Ladyship who first boldly exposed to a great personage, and 
society, Egalite's crimes, and foretold, that, after having 
washed his daggers in Royal blood at Paris, he would send 
his hireling ruffians to attempt like horrors here ! truths which 
are well known now, although they appeared then incredible. 
Her information when on the Continent, and knowledge of 
foreign politics, are most accurate, and valuable." — {Times, 
Feb. 12, 1793.) 

" The first speech Mr. Grey ever delivered in Parliament, 
was on the subject of the Commercial Treaty with France 
At t/iat time Mr. Grey expressed, in very forcible language, his 
abhorrence of any connexion whatever with the French, and, 
strongly insisting on their inbred hatred to this country, 
declared, they were a perfidious, and treacherous, people, and 
on no account to be trusted." — {Times, Feb. 14, 1793.) 

" On Mr. Grey, being the only Man not in Mourning in the 
House of Commons, on a late melancholy occasion." — ( Times, 
Feb. 14, 1793.) 

" 'Twas unfeeling forsooth, 
Every Man in the House 
Was in mourning, but one who drest gay ; 
As he would not be Black, 
He'll be made to look Blue, 
A mixture which forms a bad Grey." 

" It is said that there have been one hundred and twenty- 
one Changes in the Peerage since the commencement of 
Mr. Hastings's trial in 1788." — {Times, Feb. 18, 1793.) 



286 Old Times. 

" An Expostulation with John Bull, in favour of the 
Marquis of L — nsd — n : — 

" Of the Candidates John for thy favour of late, 
Among all who are noble, and wish to be great, 
Sure L — nsd — n, with reason may fairly complain, 
That his merits could never your confidence gain ! 
The Moralists too, will confess with a tear, 
That Virtue performs but a Pilgrimage here ! 
Else had L — nsd — n long since been possess'd of that 

pow'r 
Which England took from him, in splenetic hour. 
He was always a Friend to his Country's Cause, 
The prop of her Church, the support of her Laws ; 
He ne'er with Republicans chose to accord, 
And his Foes never call'd him the Levelling Lord. 
He made the fam'd Peace of the year Eighty Three, 
A Peace, John, as good for himself, as for thee. 
In his speech he is open, and candid no doubt, 
For which side he espouses, no man can find out ; 
Whether Whig, whether Tory, of High Church, or Low ; 
You may puzzle your brains, but you never will know. 
As a proof that the Marquis is no Partizan, 
Let the world call six persons his Friends — if it can. 1 
Great Jekyll, that man so renowned at the Bar, 
More witty than Fielding, more learned than Parr, 
Who punning despises, as L — nsd — n does place, 
Says, his Patron's pure mind, is as fair as his face, 
That his Bounty and Eloquence equally flow, 
To comfort the Weak, and to succour the Low. 
Yet this eloquent speaker, this statesman so just, 
No Sect will confide in, no Party will trust ; 
And I speak it, alas ! with reproach to mankind, 
To his Merits and Virtue, his Country is blind ! 
And when full of honours and Years he shall die, 
Ungrateful Britannia, will not heave a sigh ; 

1 We imagine Political Friends must here be alluded to — for the amiable 
and endearing qualities of the Marquis's sympathising heart, must have 
insured him, in private life, the warm affections of all his relations and 
dependants. 



Old Times. 287 

Nay, perhaps with a sneer, she may scoffingly say, 
The Sun of my Glory, is faded away ! ! l 

" ZTIF." 
— (Times, Feb. 16, 1793-) 

" No less than eighty four actions of bribery are brought on 
the business of the Stockbridge election ; the penalties sued for 
amount to ^42, 000." — (Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) 

" ' Want of information is our bane,' says' the female politician 
in the Humourist : but the following anecdote, which is a fact, 
will prove that want of information is not numbered among 
the wants of Administration. A Young Gentleman, Clerk in 
an Office under Government, in consequence of strong entreaties 
from a friend, accompanied him to a meeting of about thirty, 
at a tavern, when, after dinner, several very seditious toasts 
were given, the visitor was called on, and gave the King ; this 
toast, however, being rejected, and all expostulations proving 
in vain, he left the company soon after, and the next day, by 
the advice of his friends, waited on Mr. Pitt, to tell his story. 
But, judge his surprise, when the Minister, interrupting him, 
produced a paper, in which was written the names of the 
parties, the order in which they sate, the toasts drank, and 
here, sir, added Mr. Pitt, observe your own name placed at 
the bottom ! ! ! " — (Times, March 5, 1794.) 

" Diamond cut Diamond. — Dr. Priestly, we will not 
say lately, gave 'the Sans Culottes of England* at a dinner 
party. A Clergyman of the Church of England, willing to get 
rid of politics, archly exclaimed — ' Yes, with all my heart, I 
presume you mean the single ladies, for the married ones 
generally wear the breeches.' The wit being called upon in 
his turn, Dr. Priestley desired the President to be on his 
guard, for he saw plainly that the Clergyman, if presented with 
an inch, would take an ell. ' Thank you for the hint, 
Doctor,' replied the Clerical Humourist. ' Yes, I'll take three 
L's, so here's Liberty, Loyalty, and Lawn Sleeves ! ' The 

1 At the conclusion of the American War, when the noble Marquis 
came into power, he emphatically said " the Sun of England's Glory was 
set for ever," and many grave people entertained that opinion during the 
short time his Lordship was Minister of this Country. 



288 Old Times. 

room, of course, was in a roar, and the Doctor, quite shocked, 
went off like ' lightning without a conductor." — {Times, 
March 4, 1794.) 

" The late contest at Wycombe, between Sir F. Baring and 
Mr. Dashwood, was carried on to a very high pitch by the 
mob. Lord Wycombe was thrown down in the mud. Mr. 
Dashwood lost his hat in the affray, and all was confusion and 
riot. The Lansdowne interest, however, prevailed, and Sir 
Francis was returned." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1794.) 

" Sir Francis Barin j is elected Member for High Wycombe, 
in the room of Sir John Jervis. Sir Francis was opposed 
by Sir John Dashwood. The votes were, for Sir F. B. 29, 
Sir John D. 22." — {Times, Feb. 5, 1794.) 

" The Society for Constitutional Information, held a meeting 
at the Crown and Anchor, in the Strand, on Friday last, where 
toasts of the most seditious tendency were drunk, and senti- 
ments expressed which ought to send the speakers to Botany 
Bay. The number of seditionists who met on the above 
occasion, amounted to 300 persons ; among whom were not 
to be found above three who possessed an acre of land in this 
country. They were men mostly in desperate circumstances, 
who had everything to gain, and nothing to lose, by a Revolu- 
tion. They toasted success to the French, sung the Marseillois 
treasonable Hymn, and Ca ira, arraigned the justice of the law 
that had punished traitors in Scotland, Ireland, and England, 
and gave the health of those traitors. They abused and 
vilified the House of Commons, called the Royal Family, and 
the Nobility of Great Britain, beggars : said it was the interest 
of the people to join with those struggling in the cause against 
which our Country was fighting. In short they did everything 
short of active rebellion? — {Times, May 5, 1794.) 

" On a lamp post, in the Westminster-Road, is a paper with 
the Title of Public Notice, respecting some parish business, 
and immediately underneath it, is Sir Joseph Mawbey's late 
speech at Epsom. Two sailors stopping on Sunday to read it, 
when one had began, the other cried out — " Stop, Jack : you're 



Old Times. 289 

wrong, don't you see it is beneath Public Notice?' alluding to 
the paper above it : and they both walked away."— {Times, 
Nov. 3, 1 7 94-) 

A Reform Bill was sorely needed in the matters of 

Elections. 

" Election for Launceston, Cornwall. Candidates, Hon. Mr. 
Rawdon, Mr. Brogden. The numbers were as follows :— 
Hon. Mr. Rawden and Mr. Brogden, . . 12. 

Dalkeith and Gar thshore, "• 

"This contest here was a hard fought battle between the Duke 
of Northumberland and the Duke of Buccleugh. Both parties 
have spent a great deal of money : but the former has carried 
the fay."— (Times, June 6, 1796.) 

" Shrewsbury Election.— The. state of the Poll on Monday 
was as follows :— Sir W. Pulteney, 1607 ; John Hill, Esq., 
834 ; Hon. W. Hill, 832. The Election, it is thought, will 
cost Sir Richard Hill ^100,000. The expence to each 
party is about ^1000 per day."— (Times, June 9, i79 6 -) 

"A certain new Member for a Borough in the West of 
England, is indebted to the family Jewels of his wife for bear- 
ing the expence of his Election. Not only her diamonds, but 
the greater part of her cloaths have been withheld. Those 
that were returned to her, would have disgraced her waiting 
woman."— (Times, July 4, i79 6 -) 

"Yesterday conformable to an ancient ridiculous custom, 
came on the Election, at Wandsworth, for a Mayor of 
Garratt. The candidates were two— Sir George Cooke, 
Greengrocer and Inhabitant of Lambeth: and Sir Harry 
Dimsdale, a Muffin Baker. Sir George set off from his house 
in the morning, surrounded by all the appendages of grandeur, 
and placed in an open landau, drawn by six beautiful horses, 
with postillions on the first four, elegantly attired in red. A 
coach and four preceded him all the way in equal style. 

" After he had arrived at the entrance of Wandsworth, his 
horses were taken out by the mob, and he was drawn by them 
to the Hustings, where he joined his opponent, who was little 

T 



290 Old Times. 

short of Sir George in point of etiquette. After a long preamble 
from each party, promising unremitting attention to the duties 
of the office, the honours of the day were conferred on Sir 
George Cooke." — {Times, A?tg. 25, 1796.) 

"Garrat Election. — Most of the Morning Prints of yesterday 
misstated this business. It was Sir Harry Dimsdale, and not 
Sir George Cooke, who was returned. Those who supported 
Sir George, did not even put him in nomination. He was 
drawn there, it is true, but he made no stand : he gave up 
the contest, and Sir Harry was crowned with a green bough, 
and the horses taken from his carriage by the populace, who 
drew him in triumph to the Bull, at East Sheen, to dinner, 
where above six hundred people sat down to a plentiful dinner. 
After dinner, it was proposed that Sir Harry should go, on 
Friday, in State, to the Royal Circus, in St. George's Fields, 
and this motion being carried, we understand the Muffin 
Knight will actually be there this evening." — (Times, Aug. 26, 
1796.) 

This was the last of these mock elections — and we 
may well pause for a while, and examine this curious 
institution — unique in its way — not thoroughly well- 
known — and whose origin, even, is in dispute. 

Not far from Wandsworth, on the road to Tooting, 
is found the hamlet of Garrett, or Garrat, which, in the 
time of Queen Elizabeth, appears to have consisted of a 
single house, called " the Garvett." This was, at the 
time of its destruction, about the year 1760, in the 
possession of the Broderick family, and its grounds were 
then let to a market gardener. Lyson's, writing in 
1792, says the hamlet consisted of about 50 houses — but 
it grew until it became incorporated into Wandsworth, 
and its site is still known by " Garret Lane," " Garret 
Green," " Garret Hill," &c. 

As regards the curious mock election which took place 
here with each new Parliament, nothing certain is known, 




Jeffrey Di/nstan, — Ordinary (osturrte 



Old Times. 291 

and opinions are divided, as to its origin. Dr. Ducarel, 
an antiquary, writing in 1754, tells us, that as far as he 
can find out, it began, some 60 or 70 years previously, 
with some Wandsworth Watermen, who went to a public 
house, called the Leather Bottle, at Garrat, to spend 
a merry day — and, it being a general election, they, 
in fun, chose one of their number as Member for 
Garrat. 

Another version is given in the " Gentleman's Maga- 
zine " for 1 78 1, in which a writer says he was told, that 
about thirty years previously, several persons who lived 
near that part of Wandsworth which adjoins to Garrat 
Lane, had formed a kind of Club, not merely for the 
pleasures of the table, but to concert measures for remov- 
ing the encroachments made on that part of the Common; 
and to prevent any others being made, for the future. 
When a sufficient sum of money had been subscribed 
amongst them, they brought an action against the 
encroacher, in the name of the president (or, as they 
called him, Mayor,) of the Club. They gained their suit, 
with costs, and, ever after, the president, was called "the 
Mayor of Garrat." This event happening at the time 
of a general election, the ceremony, which took place 
every new parliament, of choosing outdoor members for 
the borough of Garrat, was continued* 

The earliest record of Members being chosen, is in 
1747, when three Candidates for the honour appeared. 
Lord Twankum Squire Blow me down (Willis, a Water- 
man) and Squire Gubbins, (one Simmonds, a publican.) 
The " Clerk," and " Recorder," issued from an imaginary 
Town Hall. There were proper Hustings, at which an 
oath was administered to the electors which, according 
to Grose, was sworn on a brick bat — and the qualification 



292 Old Times. 

was, that the juror had had an amour in the surrounding 
open fields. 

There was a great deal of rough wit in the candidate's 
speeches, and Foote, Garrick, and Wilkes, were credited 
with writing their addresses. Foote even wrote a play, 
called " the Mayor of Garratt," which was produced at 
Drury Lane. There were elections in 1761, 1763, 
1768, &c. That of 1 78 1 — was famous for the magni- 
ficence of its procession — having a real live man in 
armour. In 1784, Sir Jeffrey Dunstan (they all dubbed 
themselves knights) was elected to the honourable post, 
and he held it till his death in 1796. 

This worthy needs a passing notice. His birth, and 
education, were but humble, for he was found, wrapped 
in a cloth, on the door step of a Church warden, of St. 
Dunstan's in the East — hence his name of Dunstan. He 
grew up deformed, and rickety, and, at the age of 12, 
was apprenticed to a greengrocer, for 9 years — but the 
servitude galled him, and he ran away, finding employ- 
ment at Birmingham. He returned to London in 1776 
and soon afterwards married — and had two daughters, 
who were really fine young women. He was squalid, 
and filthy, in his dress, and got his living by buying, and 
selling, old wigs. His humour, however, gained him his 
election for Garrett. The accompanying illustrations 
shew him in his ordinary dress, as " Old Wigs," and in 
the superb court suit which he sported at election times. 

The Election, at last, led to such disgraceful scenes, 
that even the publicans, who were its chief mainstay, 
would no longer support it : and Sir Harry Dimsdale, 
holds the proud pre-eminence of being the last elected 
Member. 




§ir Jeffrey Dunstan, — (ourt Dress. 



Old Times. 293 



ROYALTY. 

Lives of the Georges, and their families, have been 
written ad nauseam, and I did not intend making any 
notes upon the Royal personages, then living— but I 
found some few paragraphs, which lie outside regular 
history, and may interest my readers. 

" It was rather unfortunate for the Prince of Wales's proxy 
at the Court of Brunswick, that he should be attacked with 
the Gout, on the night of the marriage ceremony! Lord 
Malmesbury continued to be confined to his room when 
the last accounts came from Brunswick."— {Times, Dec. 15, 
1 794-) 

"TO LORD MALMESBURY, 

" On his being attacked by the Gout, the day he represented 
the Prince of Wales, in marriage with the Princess of 
Brunswick : — 

" At such a time, the Gout to have, 
Is much to be lamented, 
What must the Royal Bride conceive 

Of him you represented ? CUPID." 

— {Times, Dec. 16, 1794.) 

"LORD MALMESBURY'S GOUT. 

" His Lordship's sent to Brunswick's Court 
By Proxy, there to wed 
A Royal Princess : as Consort i 
To George, our Prince's, bed. 



294 Old Times. 

But charms like hers, in bloom of life, 

Too strong for age to meet : 
As he approached th' intended wife : 

Deprived him of his feet." 

— {Times, Dec. 17, 1794.) 

" THE LAME LOVER, or BRITISH AND FRENCH 
SYNONIMY. 

" With coach and six, with servants eight, 
With liveries spic and span ; 
Too sure, alas ! a wretched fate 
Befel the splendid, happy man. 
At such a time, as this, the Gout ! 
'Twas pity, Sirs, and yet 'tis true : 
The Proxy's good, if Fame's not out — 
His Royal Highness has a Gout." 

— (Times, Dec. 18, 1794.) 

" Her Majesty is very busily employed in embroidering a 
coat and waistcoat, for his Majesty, which are to be worn at 
the approaching nuptials of the Prince, and Princess of 
Wales. The coat is made of garter blue, broad cloth, and 
the waistcoat of white satin. The ornamental part is spoken 
of as being extremely beautiful." — (Times, Jan. 13, 1795.) 

" The usual dress liveries of the Prince of Wales, while a 
bachelor, cost fifty guineas each : those, in which they will 
appear before the Princess, have cost one hundred guineas 
each." — (Times, March 17, 1795.) 

"Amidst the curious bills which are daily being brought to 
light, under the investigation of the Prince's Trustees, is one 
of Mr. Layton the farrier, which, for the last seven years, 
amounts to no less than ,£17,500 !'' — (Times, Aug. 29, 1795.) 

" The King being prevented, by the severity of the weather, 
from taking his usual diversion of hunting, at Windsor, his 
Majesty, with his usual suite, makes daily pedestrian excursions, 
some of which amount to a route little short of 20 miles." 
— (Times, Dec. 9, 1796.) 



Old Times. 295 

The Times of Jan. 17, 1798, contains a paragraph, 
showing the domesticity, and simplicity of life, in the 
Royal Family. 

" The Princess of Wirtemberg expects to lie in, towards the 
latter end of next month ; and her Majesty, and the Princesses, 
are very busily employed in making the childbed linen, which 
is to be a present from the Queen." 

(The Queen's Birthday.) 

" The BALL-ROOM. The Ball was the thinnest, in com- 
pany, that we have ever witnessed, there being only two Ladies 
on the benches allotted for those who dance. Neither the 
Prince, nor Princess, of Wales, the Duke, or Duchess of 
York, were present. Soon after nine o'clock, their Majesties 
entered the Ball-room. The Duke of Clarence danced the 
two first minuets with the Princess Augusta, and two more 
with the Princess Elizabeth, which is very unusual. Prince 
William danced the next two with the Princess Mary, and 
two more with the Princess Sophia. Lord Morton then 
danced two dances with Lady Murray, daughter to the Duke 
of Athol, and two more with Lady M. Thynne. There were 
four country Dances, but only six couple. The Ball broke up 
soon after 11 o'clock." — (Times, Jan. 19, 1798.) 

Here is a specimen of Royal economy, which was 
certainly unpopular : — 

" Some of the cream-coloured horses formerly attached to 
the Royal Coach, and which were only used on state days, are 
now employed in the daily drudgery of hackney coaches. The 
present proprietor values them very highly, and thinks, from 
their great receipt of custom, that they will draw him into an 
easy fortune." — {Times, Aug. 10, 1796.) 

"To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. 

" Sir, — Among many others, I was yesterday a spectator of 
what you notice in your paper of this morning. A pair of 
those noble animals, which, for several years, have drawn his 
Majesty's State Coach, degraded to a hack. The spectacle 



296 Old Times. 

really gave me concern, and must certainly reflect disgrace 
somewhere. It necessarily suggests two considerations, one 
relative to the dignity of Majesty itself, the other to the natural 
emotions of sensibility. What ! say the vulgar, are the King's 
State Horses come to this ? Oh ! what a pity ! says the man 
of sensibility, that these poor creatures recently, and habitually, 
so caressed, and pampered, should experience such a lament- 
able reverse ! How fallen, how abused, how galled ! I assure 
you, Mr. Editor, they are literally, and grievously, galled. Surely 
his Majesty must be a stranger to all this : and it would be of 
no dis-service to him, to let the Public know that he is so. 
Those who love him, cannot but feel for his horses, nor 
refrain from thinking that his sensibility, as a man, must be 
hurt, at hearing of the sufferings of those stately animals, 
which once contributed to his most magnificent public appear- 
ance. A Dutiful Subject." 
— {Times, Aug. 12, 1796.) 

Here is a bit of Satire on the Prince of Wales, who 
was notoriously at variance with both his father and 
mother. 

"An illustrious Personage is now engaged in making a 
collection of the profile likenesses of his friends. The number 
already collected is stated to amount to fifty. His friends are 
certainly more numerous than those of almost any Prince we 
ever heard of, except our own Sovereign. The wealthy Croesus 
had but one friend, and that was his son." — (Times, Nov. 6, 
I799-) 






Old Times. 297 



VARIETIES. 

The year 1788 begins well, with an account of a coming 
of age, which seems to have been conducted in the 
classical taste peculiar to this period. 

" The late celebration of Miss Pulteney coming of age, bore 
much the appearance of idolatrous sacrifice. The procession 
headed by an ox, adorned with flowers, his horns painted blue, 
and tipped with gold, preceded by a band of music, and after- 
wards offered up, were all so much in character, that could 
the High Priest, himself, of Rome been present, and beheld 
the charming object of their veneration, he would have mis- 
taken her for a Venus, and joined the throng, with all that 
ardour the immediate presence of a divinity ought to inspire." 
— {Morning Post, Jan. 1, 1788.) 

The following advertisement from the Morning Post of 
March 13, 1788, gives us perhaps the earliest glimmer of 
reform on the old tinder box, flint and steel, and matches, 
Lucifer Matches not being generally used till 1834 : — 

"For Travellers, Mariners, &c. 

"Promethean Fire and Phosphorus. 

" G. Watts respectfully acquaints the public, that he has pre- 
pared a large variety of machines of a portable, and durable 
kind, with Promethean fire, paper and match inclosed, most 
admirably calculated to prevent those disagreeable sensations, 
which frequently arise in the dreary hour of midnight, from 
the sudden alarm of thieves, fire, or sickness ; as, by procuring 
an instantaneous light, the worst calamities and depredations 
might often be prevented in families. Experience has likewise 
proved this invention to be of the first utility to the traveller, 



298 Old Times. 

mariners, and those people who frequently rise in the night- 
time, as they can, with one of these matches procure light 
instantly, without the great expence, and danger, of burning 
a lamp or candle." 

Anything that illustrates the Social Life of " Old 
Times," must needs be of interest, even though, as in 
the accompanying engraving, the subject be painful. It 
is by Rowlandson, and shews, better than words can 
convey, the then treatment of that saddest of all human 
maladies — mental aberration. 

Chained by the neck to a wall — scantily clothed' — ■ 
barefoot, and with but straw to lie on, was hardly the 
usage by which the alienated intellect could be restored 
to its proper tone — yet so it was, in too many cases, 
that mad people were treated : the whip, and even 
harsher punishment following, should they show any 
signs of rebellion. 

"The bet of his Grace of Bedford, that Lord Barrymore 
will not eat a live Cat, is not without precedent on the records 
of sporting. On a wager of fifty pounds, a fellow who lived 
near the race-course of Kildare, in Ireland, devoured five 
fox cubs, and literally began eating each while alive. It 
is, however, to be observed, that the devourer was a natural 
fool, having been born deaf, dumb, and without a palate." — 
(Morning Post, Mar. 15, 1788.) 

" A fine topaz sold at Tenducci's sale for seven guineas ; the 
finest in the kingdom : is the property of Mrs. More of Stock- 
well, and what, perhaps, would increase its value in the esti- 
mation of many people, this topaz once belonged to Queen 
Anne. It is near an inch in diameter, and of most uncommon 
brilliancy." — (Morning Post, Ap. 17, 1788.) 

That Agriculture was not neglected, we can well 
imagine, for England had to be almost self contained, 
as regarded food for her population — but few know to 




ireaf-mcnt of Lunatics. 



Old Times. 299 

what a pitch of perfection sheep breeding was carried — 
nor the enormous prices paid for the hire of stud rams. 

"Mr. Bakewell, the famous grazier, has lost one of his 
most remarkable rams. It was of such value, that he let it 
out to hire, and received ^400 for the season." — {Morning 
Post, Sept. 12, 1788.) 

This was the far famed agriculturist. Robert Bake- 
well — who brought his father's famous " Dishley " sheep 
to such perfection, that in 1787, he let three rams, for a 
year, for ^1250, and was offered, but refused, £1050 
for twenty ewes. When we think of the difference of 
the value of Currency, then, and now, these prices are 
fairly staggering. These Dishley sheep had good 
qualities, they were quiet — they fattened quickly, and 
well — and they had small bones. But Bakewell, even in 
his cattle, as well as his sheep, always kept in view, what, 
even now, are the guiding principles in our Cattle shows 
— Perfection of form — the most meat from the least food — 
the least offal — and large joints with small bones. 

" The following is a copy of a hand bill, which was a few 
days ago distributed in the city of Edinburgh : — 

" ' Thou shalt not steal — All persons whom it may concern 
are desired to take notice, that steel traps of the largest sort, for 
catching breakers of the eighth Commandment, are, every night, 
placed in the garden at St. Bernard's, between Stockbridge and 
the Water of Leith, on the North side of the water : That 
spring guns are set to rake the Walls with shot, upon a touch 
of a wire ; and, that a tent, having in it an armed Watchman, 
is pitched in the middle, with orders to fire without mercy. 

" ' If, therefore, any evil disposed unhappy person or persons, 
shall attempt to break into the ground of St. Bernard's, their 
blood be upon their own heads. 

" ' Of the fruit of the garden thou shalt not eat ; for in the 
day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die,' " Gen. 2. 27. 
— {Morning Post, Sept. 17, 1788.) 



300 Old Times. 

"One day last week a Sub distributor of Stamps, who 
resides a few miles from London, and who is also a Glover, was 
convicted in the penalty of Eighty Pounds, before the Sitting 
Magistrates at the Public Office, in St. Martin's Lane, for sell- 
ing Four Pair of Gloves without Stamps." Probably under 25 
Geo. 3, cap. 55. (1785.) — (Morning Post, Oct. 20, 1788.) 

The following singular inscription is literally taken 
from a sign in the vicinity of Reading : — 

"Beards taken off and registered. 
"By Isaac Fac-totwn. 

"Barber, Peri-wig maker, Surgeon, Parish Clerk, Scool 
master, and Man midwife. 

" Shaves for a penne, cuts hare for toopense and oyld and 
powdird into the bargain — Young Ladys genteely edicated, 
Lamps lited by the hear or quarter. Young Gentlemen also taut 
their Grammer Langwage in the neetest maner and great cear 
takin of their Morels and Spelin — Also Saline singing and horse 
Shewin by the real maker ! Likewise makes and mends all sorts 
of Butes and Shoes. Teches the Ho-boy and Jews-harp, Cuts 
corns bledes and blisters on the lowes Terms ; Glisters and 
purgis at a penne apiece. Cow-tillions and other dances taut 
at home and abrode. Also deals holesale and retale pirfum- 
mery in all its branchis. Sells all sorts of Stationary wair 
twogether with blackin balls red herrins gingerbred Coles 
scrubbin brushes traycle mouce traps and other swetemetes. 

" Likewise Godfathers Cordiel red rutes Tatoes Sassages 
and all other gardin stuff. N.B. — I teches joggrafy and those 
outlandish kind of things — A Bawl on Wensdays and Fridays 
all pirfomed god willin by me Isaac Factotum." 

— (Morning Post, Nov. 19, 1788.) 

" An Impromptu 
on Mr. Domford's Piety. 
" So pious was Josiah's care 
He sacred would keep one day, 
And in the gutter threw his beer 
For Working on a Sunday." 
— (Morning Post, Jan. 6, 1789.) 



Old Times. 301 

Who can say after reading the following that our 
grandfathers were not a match for the Americans, at 
telling a " tall " story : — 

" Natural History. 

"A very curious incident happened near Edmonton last 
week, to account for which we are unable, and leave the 
explanation to botanical and Chirurgical professors. 

"A farmer requested some lettuces from a gentleman in 
the neighbourhood, who permitted the farmer's maid to gather 
what she wanted ; she gathered likewise some Cucumbers, 
and near them were glasses covering sensitive and humble 
plants, which the wench gathered as small sallad. 

" The farmer eat heartily of these, and the effect was, that 
after dinner, tho' he is a very fat man, a slight touch from 
another person made him shrink at least five stone; but, towards 
the evening, he recovered gradually his usual bulk and weight ; 
and, when he had evacuated the sallad and mimosa, he retained 
his corpulency as if nothing extraordinary had happened. 

"This we insert as a caution to persons not to mix this 
plant with other pot herbs." — {Morning Post, Aug. 31, 1789.) 

Gillray, Oct. 4, 1791, gives us the accompanying 
extremely graphic illustrations — shewing the difference 
of behaviour at the Opera and at Church — the vivacity 
of the one, and the somnolence of the other. 

"A Card 

"Addressed to those among the female sex, whose desires are 
neither Romantic nor Extravagant, who stand in need and 
wish for such an opportunity as is now offered. 

"A SINGLE GENTLEMAN who is blest with an Inde- 
pendence, adequate to every real comfort in life, and having 
none to provide for, prefers permanent friendship and protec- 
tion to a Lady possessing the following requisites : age not 
exceeding 35, person well shaped, teeth sound and regular, 
good voice, a stranger to the hackneyed tricks of the town : 
good temper, constancy, a social disposition, engaging manners, 
a turn to economy, and a knowledge by experience of 



302 Old Times. 

domestic concerns, a taste for simplicity and elegance in dress, 
spruce in her person, and attentive to neatness in others ; free 
from incumbrance, affectation and unpleasant habits : a pleas- 
ing countenance, if the face should neither be beautiful nor 
pretty — musical talents, vocal and instrumental — and she who 
may be the greatest proficient on the pianoforte or harpsichord, 
or what is still more irresistible, the harp, if in other respects 
equal, will claim the preference. The Lady, of course, must 
be totally at her own disposal : if a native of Britain, a Know- 
ledge of French so as to speak it fluently; if a foreigner, 
capable of speaking and writing the English language with 
ease and propriety : and both native, and foreign, habituated to 
the English Customs in every point of cleanliness and delicacy. 

" Should she be conversant with Italian, with a genius for 
painting, poetry, astronomy, botany, &c, she would be the 
more acceptable. Not only the utmost regard to decorum 
will be observed upon this occasion, but that respect which 
the delicacy of the sex demands, shall be manifested as early 
as possible." He hopes, therefore, since his motives are so 
obvious, that those whose sentiments are congenial with his 
own, who mean to notice this address will do it speedily, as 
the Author will soon be going to the Continent on an exten- 
sive tour. 

" For this and other cogent reasons, which hereafter may be 
specified, Principals only will be treated with. Such communi- 
cations, and positively no other, as are written in the Party's 
own hand, at once explicit respecting situation, intention and 
expectation, &c, shall according to their merits be duly acknow- 
ledged, and the necessary steps in consequence will be pointed 
out to bring the matter with safety to an immediate issue. 

" Should an object whose person, talents, and accomplish- 
ments, &c, are superior to the generality of females, be dis- 
covered with proofs of serious intention, a marriage may be 
the result. The want of pelf, if of a respectable connection, 
should with the Author, be no impediment thereto, being, 
with prudence, amply provided for. The Advertiser forbears 
saying anymore of himself, than that his person, age, qualities, 
&c, would probably suit such a Lady as he has described : 
and as a well cultivated mind, united with the requisites above 
stated, would be preferred to the consideration of either family, 



Old Times. 303 

or fortune, he hopes some credit will be allowed him for his 
good intentions. 

"Letters free of postage will be received if addressed to 
G. A. S., at the Recorder Printing Office, No. 12 Duke St. 
Drury Lane." — {Times, Feby. 7, 1793.) 

"ELEGANT PRIZE FOR LADIES. 

" Marriage Ceremonies, Science of Match-Making, Names 
Qualifications and Fortunes, of Heirs and Heiresses — Copious 
and Alphabetical List of Marriages in Great Britain and 
Ireland — New and Chaste Love Epistles — Matrimonial Bon 
Mots — Art of Tormenting — New and predominant Fashions, 
delineated by the Pen and Pencil, — And a new Cassino Fan, 
by way of reward, to the Lady who shall best answer the prize 
Enigma, Charade, or Puzzle. 

" This day is published, price 6d, embellished with — 1. 
Ludicrous representation of a Foreign Marriage Ceremony. — 
2. Exact sketches of the newest and most prevailing Male and 
Female Dresses. — 3. A new Matrimonial Song set to Music. 

Number i. (to be continued monthly) of 

"THE MATRIMONIAL MAGAZINE for January 1793. 
To contain, besides what is above enumerated, original Essays, 
Biographical Sketches, Dramatic Tales, Tales humorous and 
pathetic, alike calculated for the Maid, the Widow, and the 
Wife, the Stripling and the Greybeard. Wit will be combined 
with decency, and humour with sense. 

" London : Printed for H. D. Symonds, No. 20 Paternoster 
Row." — {Times, Feb. 15, 1793.) 

"Advt.— BOLD STROKE FOR A WIFE. 

" A person who has been six months deprived of what he 
calls Heaven's chiefest blessing, domestic happiness, is not 
ashamed of thus avowing his intention of again endeavouring 
to regain, by Marriage, that solid felicity he so much regrets 
the loss of, and hopes this way to become acquainted with 
some Maiden Lady, who has a soul superior to vulgar pre. 
judices, and who will venture to go a little out of the beaten 
road, in order to form a truly rational plan for that sociable 
happiness which is only to be found in the Marriage State. 
The writer of this has no children, his age is between 40 and 



304 Old Times. 

50 : he has acquired, by trade, £2 0,000, has a house at the 
West end of the town, another in Kent, and a Coach to take 
him from one to the other : so that he thinks himself deserv- 
ing of a Lady of equal fortune : the more so, as he will permit 
her to make it over to herself or her relations : and if she 
should not possess more than half that sum, 'he'd ne'er 
quarrel for that' — A line, addressed to W. W., No. 32 Snow 
Hill, by any Lady, or her friends, will be considered as a mark 
of good sense, and treated with the respect that is due from a 
man of sense to the fair sex." — (Times, March 10, 1794.) 

Advt. — " Matrimony. A Gentleman of small independent 
Fortune, occupying a Farm in a retired Part of the Country, 
within 20 miles South West of London, takes this public 
method of addressing any Lady, who may feel happy, and 
disposed to place herself under the protection of such a 
person. He is a Widower, 28 years of age, with an only 
child, who is amply provided for. On the part of the Lady, 
it will be expected that her person be fair, her mind amiable, 
and well-informed, her disposition feminine. In return, the 
conduct of the Gentleman will be found to be in every respect 
manly, honourable, and sincere. A line by way of introduc- 
tion, addressed to Mr. Amiens, Epsom, will be paid every 
attention to, and it is particularly entreated, that no other, but 
of the above description, will give themselves that trouble." — 
{Times, Novr. 26, 1798.) 

The French were very badly off for clothing, and as 

war was on the very eve of commencement — (diplomatic 

relations between the two Countries having ceased, and 

the French already having begun open hostilities) — 

clothing, naturally, was considered "Contraband of 

War : " hence the following : — 

" A vessel loaded with cloathing, to the amount of ,£120,000, 
was on Tuesday stopped in the River. She was bound to a 
port in France."— ^(Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) 

" The Earl of Bute's grand Orrery was sold yesterday for 
the trifling sum of sixty guineas, and the celebrated annual 



Old Times. 305 

clock, regulating the revolutionary movements of two globes, 
and of an orrery for twenty-six guineas." — (Times, Feb. 9, 
I793-) 

" Tuesday as Mrs. Fitzherbert, (George 4th's wife) attended 
by Miss Bell Pigott, was riding in her carriage in Pall Mall, 
the carriage of Colonel Strickland came in close contact with 
that of the ladies, by which they were both overturned. 

" On Mrs. Fitzherbert and Miss Bell Pigott's overturn — 

" What ups and downs a Woman feels 
In almost every station ; 
Down went our Heads, up came our Heels 
' Talk of a Coronation ! ! ! ' 

"Ccetera desunt." 
— {Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) 

"On the late INUNDATION in OLD PALACE YARD. 

" On one side Duke Norfolk 1 pushed forward with strife 
For he never liked Water throughout his whole life." 
— {Times, March 1, 1793.) 

" The Duke of Norfolk is attacked by the Hydrophobia, 
he can't bear the sight of water. His Physicians have pre- 
scribed Wine. The Marquis of Stafford, Marquis of Bath, 
and Lord Thurloiv who were present, sanctified this prescrip- 
tion with their most hearty consent." — {Times, Feb. 17, 1794.) 

" A new way to travel expeditiously and safely. 

" The Duke of Luxembourg, wishing to return to his family 
at Lisbon, and being apprehensive of going in one of the 
common packets, which, if taken by the French, would probably 
cost him his life, lately applied to Lord Chatham, for a passage 
in an English frigate going to Lisbon. His Lordship very 
obligingly acquiesced, and a few days since the Duke sailed 
in her from Portsmouth. It turns out, however, that this 
frigate has been ordered to cruise for six weeks before she 
makes for Lisbon : and thus is the unfortunate Duke exposed 
to the risk of the elements and the hazard of an engagement, 

1 He was notorious for his drinking propensities. 



306 Old Times. 

from having employed his influence to procure a safe passage" 
— (Times, May. 10, 1793.) 

" There was a rapid trade between Birmingham and France, 
of base coin, carried from the former to the latter in Folkstone 
vessels, and with this coin great part of the Army was paid, 
but the whole is now stopped, and the French Soldiers are 
paid in paper." — (Times, May 10, 1793.) 

"The Duke of Bedford has just completed at Wooburn 
a Dog-Kennel, that far exceeds his Grace of Richmond's in 
all points of extent and magnificence : independently of the 
immense suite of canine apartments, it has baths, coffee rooms, 
billiard room, &c, and in the centre is a most spacious riding 
house, &c, for the equestrian amusement of his friends in bad 
weather." — (Times, Jan. 31, 1794.) 

"We know not the Nobleman or Gentleman alluded to 
lately in the House of Commons, as contracting at ^800 a 
year for supplying his Dog-Kennel ; but we have heard it 
said on very good authority, that there are two kennels, not 
far from Brighton, in Sussex, which cost very little short of 
this sum. The Duke of Bedford's Dog-Kennel is a mere 
nothing to either of those alluded to." — (Times, April 13, 
1796.) 

"THE FUNERAL!! 

" It was not a Tom Cat, for its melodious squalls plainly 
proved it had long been qualified for the Opera. — It was, how- 
ever, a prodigious favourite with its Mistress. Long had it 
lived upon the fat of the land, in Charlotte St., Queen Anne 
St., where it took great care of Number One ! For the space 
of six years and three months did its Mistress indulge it with 
' Rivers of Milk ; ' and besides it was a sad Cat, for the 
matter of that, in skimming the cream off everything worth 
skimming. But as Cats, though they may have nine lives, are 
not immortal, poor Ralph fell sick and died — without giving 
time even for a consultation of Physicians ! His Mistress, 
after the first transports of grief were subsided, sent for a 
Surgeon, who opened the body. He reported that poison was 
not the cause, as suspected, of his death, but that he was 



Old Times, 307 

literally killed with kindness. In plain English, he died of 
a Plethora, for he was fat at heart. 

"Away posted the Lady and purchased a piece of ground, 
just large enough to swing a Cat in, at the new burial ground 
in Mary-le-bonne. The charge was trifling, only two guineas ; 
an Undertaker provided a coffin in miniature : Grimalkin, 
after having lain in state, and several of the frail sisterhood, 
friends of the Lady, partaken of wine and cake, of which 
plenty was provided ; a Hearse with White Plumes drove to 
the door, and the Lady, a Chief Mourner, attended by her 
weeping friends, who filled several Mourning Coaches, fol- 
lowed Ralph to the grave last Tuesday week, like ' Niobe 
all in tears ; ' and after the body had been deposited in the 
earth, though with but ' maimed rites,' 'tis true, she returned 
slowly to the house of mourning. 

"But now comes the sad CAT-astrophe — Whether the Under- 
taker who had undertaken to keep the secret, had blabbed, 
or whether the spectators of this sad ceremony smelt, as the 
Cat had often done, a rat, so it was, however, that the body 
had not remained an hour, quietly inurned, ere they burst 
open the hinges of its sepulchre, and parading with it to the 
place from whence it came, proceeded to break the windows 
of the afflicted fair one's house : and but for the timely inter- 
position of the Magistrates, the Lady, as well as her house, 
in all probability would have been pulled to pieces ! ! ! 

" N.B. — The above is strictly a matter of fact." — {Times, 
March 21, 1794.) 

"The access to Kensington Gardens is so inconvenient 
to the visitors, that it is to be hoped the politeness of those 
who have the direction of it will induce them to give orders 
for another door to be made for the convenience of the public 
— one door for admission, and another for departure, would 
prove a great convenience to the visitors. For want of this 
regulation the Ladies frequently have their cloaths torn to 
pieces; and are much hurt by the crowd passing different 
ways." — {Times, March 28, 1794.) 

" Two Ladies were lucky enough to escape thro' the gate 
of Kensington Gardens, on Sunday last, with only a broken 



308 Old Times. 

arm each. When a few lives have been lost, perchance then 
a door or two more may be made for the convenience of the 
families of the survivors." — (Ti?nes, May 8, 1794.) 

"We noticed last year the nuisance at the door of Kensing- 
ton Gardens, leading from Hyde Park, and was in hopes, 
those who have the care would attend to it. As the season 
is approaching when company frequent it, we again recom- 
mend that an additional door should be made, and an inscrip- 
tion put over it 'The company to go in at this gate, and 
return at the other,' by which means the press will be avoided, 
and directions given, that all servants do keep away from the 
doors, who behave with great impertinence to their superiors 
as the company go in. If the gardens are to be a public 
accommodation, surely so trifling an expence can be no 
object. A greater number of seats in the gardens is very 
desirable." — (Times, April 24, 1795.) 

"The public in general, and the ladies in particular, are 
much obliged to the Ranger of Hyde Park, for having taken 
the hint given in this paper towards their accommodation, by 
ordering a new gate to be made, as an entrance into Kensing- 
ton Gardens. This convenience was yesterday much noticed, 
as there is now one gate for the entrance, and another for 
leaving the gardens, which were extremely crowded. But so 
little regularity was observed in the procession of carriages, 
on the Park Road, that there was a general stoppage about 
four o'clock, for nearly an hour ; in the throng, several 
carriages were overset, and many much injured. We never 
witnessed so much confusion on any similar occasion." — 
{Times, May 4, 1795.) 

"After a very elegant dinner given by the Lord Mayor 
to the visitors at the Mansion House on Monday, there was 
a ball as usual, which was very numerously attended : and was 
honored by the presence of the Turkish Ambassador, several 
of the Corps Diplomatique and many of our own Nobility. 
The harmony and gaiety of the Entertainment was, however, 
interrupted about two o'clock yesterday morning, by the intru- 
sion of a number of Gentlemen in the Dancing Room, who 



Old Times. 309 

had sacrificed too freely to the Jolly God, and seemed deter- 
mined to kick up a riot. They had continued drinking till 
one o'clock in the Dining parlour, and on entering the Ball- 
room behaved in such an improper manner, as to make it 
necessary to call in the Peace Officers to turn them out. A 
terrible uproar ensued ; and we understand that two or three 
of the Rioters were sent to the Poultry Compter : and we 
hope they remained there till they recovered their senses." — 
{Times, April 23, 1794.) 

" City Extravagance. — During the Rout, we had almost 
said Riot, at the Mansion House on Tuesday Morning, several 
very prudent Citizens were observed to be out-running the 
Constable ! " — {Times, April 24, 1794.) 

"We are informed from Abbey Laddercroft, in Cumber- 
land, that a woman called Jane Forrester, who lives in that 
parish, is now in the 138th year of her age. When Cromwell 
besieged the City of Carlisle, 1645, she can remember, that a 
horse's head sold for 2 s 6d, before the garrison surrendered. 
At the martyrdom of King Charles I., she was nineteen years 
of age. At Brampton, about six years ago, she made oath 
before the Commissioners, in a Chancery suit, to have known 
an estate, the right of which was then disputed, to have been 
enjoyed by the ancestors of the present heir 101 years. 
She hath an only daughter living, aged 103. And we are 
further informed, that there are six women now living in the 
same parish where she resides, the youngest of whom is 99 
years of age." — {Times, May 16, 1794.) 

Pidcock's Menagerie was the nearest substitute for 
our present Zoological Gardens, that London could boast 
of, and Exeter Change, where the Exhibition took place, 
stood on the site now occupied by the Gaiety Theatre. 

Advt. " Elephants. — Lately arrived in the Rose East India- 
man, a most wonderful living Male Elephant, and to be seen 
in a commodious room, over Exeter Change, in the Strand. 
Admittance is each. Likewise is lately added to the Grand 
Menageries, as above, two very singular and most astonishing 



310 Old Times. 

Kanguroos, male and female, from Botany Bay. Admittance is. 
Also, just arrived, and to be seen in a commodious apartment, 
under the Great Room, as above, three stupendous living 
Pelicans of the Wilderness, two males and a female. Admit- 
tance is. The three Exhibitions may be viewed for 2s 6d. 
each person. Foreign Birds and Beasts bought, sold, &c, by 
G. Pidcock." — {Times, May 22, 1794.) 

Advt. "FOREIGN BIRDS.— Just arrived at No. 1 
Coventry St., opposite the Haymarket, among which is, that 
renowned Bird the Ostrich, described in ancient and modern 
History, to be the largest in the world, it measures 9 feet high, 
and can admit of two young Ladies or Gentlemen to ride on 
its back at a time. This Bird exceeds, also, in strength, swiftness, 
and running, all the feathered tribe in the Creation ; it has the 
best plumage ever seen on an Ostrich, in this country, for 
many years. There is also a very extraordinary Bird, whose 
feathers resemble hair, and which has very much the appear- 
ance of a beast, weighing near 200 lbs. weight. The Great 
Horned Owl, described as the inhabitant of Babylon : the 
Royal crowned Crane of Africa, and other curious and un- 
common Birds : also a very singular Animal resembling a 
Spider, called the Bush Devil ; it makes use of its Tail as other 
Animals do their paws. Admittance is. each, Children and 
Servants 6d." — {Times, Jan. 5, 1795.) 

We get a very vivid description of how illuminations 
after a great victory, were managed and ' received — in 
those which took place after Lord Howe's " Glorious first 
of June." 

Earl Howe's Victory. 

" Several mobs paraded about the streets, at one, and two 
o'clock, yesterday morning, breaking the windows of those who 
had already shown their good wishes to the general cause, by 
illuminating their windows, but had retired to rest. Other 
houses again, belonging to the Quakers, were damaged 
because no lights were put forth. Such acts are contrary to 
the way of thinking of this very respectable class of Citizens. 
In this outrageous manner did several mobs proceed during 



Old Times. 311 

the early part of yesterday morning, to the very great incon- 
venience of domestic comfort, and infringement on public 
tranquillity." — {Times, June 13, 1794.) 

" The Lord Mayor requests the Inhabitants of the City to 
discontinue the Illuminations which have taken place since the 
News received of the very glorious Victory obtained by the 
British Fleet, under the command of Lord Howe. The Lord 
Mayor hopes, that the Public will be satisfied with the general 
Joy which has been so conspicuously expressed, and thinks 
that a further display of it will tend to disturb the peace and 
good order of the Metropolis." — {Times, June 14, 1794.) 

" Illuminations. — The very idea of the horrors attending 
the cry of ' Put out your lights,' made a poor Loyal German, 
in Bedfordbury, watch his little farthing rush-lights, on Wednes- 
day last, till a late hour. At length he ventured really to put 
out his lights : prudently pasting up at his door the following 
notice in capitals : ' Two o'clock — gone to bed. If I am to 
light again, pray be so obliging as to ring the bell.'" {Times, 
June 19, 1794.) 

" Mr. Wilkes bears the loss of his fine windows with that 
pleasant humour so peculiar to him, and absolutely refuses to 
prosecute any of the mob — ' They are only,' said he, ' some of my 
pupils now set up for themselves.'" — {Times, June 21, 1794-) 

Mr. Editor. 

" A Gentleman of a village near town, in his zeal for illumi- 
nating on the late joyful Victory by Lord Howe, placed so 
many candles in his windows, and that in so negligent a 
manner, that by two in the morning, three or four of his sashes 
were burnt. A Constant Reader will be favoured by your 
making room for the following on the occasion : — 

" Village Illuminations. 

" Quoth Dick, I scorn such mean display 
As rush-lights, sixes and such trash is ; 
I show my zeal in a nobler way — 
I d — n the French and burn my sashes." 
—{Times, July 14, 1794-) 



312 Old Times. 

"The following circumstance occurred last week at Long 
Milford near Bury St. Edmund's : Three young Ladies of that 
place, one of whom is very much celebrated for her mental, as well 
as personal, accomplishments, agreed a few days since, to bathe 
in a river about half a mile distant from the town, there being no 
private accommodation for that purpose in the neighbourhood. 

" An early hour, at which they would be the least liable to 
be discovered by strangers, was determined on, and at four 
o'clock in the morning, they proceeded from home to the 
appointed place. As they walked through the town, they were 
espied by a blacksmith, who, about the same hour, usually gets 
up to his work. Curiosity prompted him to find out whither 
the fair ones were bound : but he did not discover himself to 
them till they were in the river, the perfect images of their 
mother Eve ; when perceiving him approach, they screamed 
out, and prudently sat down in the water. The Modern Vulcan, 
dead to the distresses of the Venus's, determined to divert his 
uncouth fancy by carrying off their clothes, with which he did 
not return. In this pitiable situation they were obliged to 
remain for near an hour, when a poor woman passing that way, 
on hearing the rude behaviour they had experienced, and their 
consequent embarrassment, procured them such necessary 
articles of apparel, as enabled them to get home. 

"The blacksmith has since made a public boast of his 
exploit, saying it was a fine piece of sport : and, owing to his 
unfeeling and brutish conduct, the young Ladies have ever 
since been ashamed to be seen, even by their relations." — 
{Times, Aug. 8, 1794.) 

"The three water nymphs at Bury have preferred an in- 
dictment against the blacksmith who stole their cloaths, and 
this may probably turn out a very serious affair, and make 
poor Vulcan pay for his peeping '." — (Times, Aug. 9, 1794.) 

" Bath Charter. — A further degree of power, to be vested 
in the Magistrates, being deemed necessary, a new charter was 
a short time since granted for that purpose; It was sent by 
the Mail Coach, and for want of care in the packing, the 
impression of the Great Seal was knocked to atoms. It was 
presented to the Lord Chancellor to be resealed : but this his 



Old Times. 313 

Lordship refused unless the Mayor and Corporation would 
petition the Court setting forth the reasons. The Charter of 
Bath conveys the exclusive privilege of electing two Members to 
the British House of Commons to the select Corporation of 26, 
excluding all the other inhabitants."— {Times, Aug. 9, 1794-) 

We have seen, in the Historical Summary attached to 
this book, how gallantly, year after year, Wilberforce 
attacked slavery. In England, we see, they euphemised 
the word slave, and called them Indented Black Servants, 
the same as those poor wretched white slaves, the 
" Redemptioners " who sold themselves into bondage in 
the Plantations. See the following Advertisement. 

" Absconded from his master's service at Cheltenham, on 
Friday night the 8th August, between the hours of 9 and 10, 
an INDENTED BLACK SERVANT LAD, named TONEY, 
aged about 19 or 20 years. He is very black, and slender 
made, but with remarkably long feet. He went off in a striped 
dressing jacket, nankeen waistcoat and breeches, ribbed cotton 
stockings, shoes and plated buckles. He is articled for 5 
years, from the 21 April last; and upwards of £30 has been 
laid out upon him, in having him taught to shave and dress, 
cloathing, and other necessaries for him. A reward of TEN 
POUNDS will be paid to any person who shall apprehend, 
and deliver him, to Mr. Coningham, Sherborne Lane, London ; 
or lodge him in any Gaol in this Kingdom, and give notice 
thereof as above. There is every reason to believe, that great 
art, and industry, have been used to seduce, and spirit away, 
the lad ; otherwise that he would not have formed a thought 
of quitting his master. If, therefore, any person will give such 
information, and evidence, as shall be sufficient to convict any 
responsible person of having enticed, seduced, or carried away, 
the negro lad above described, * a reward of TWENTY 
GUINEAS will be paid to the person so informing, and giving 
evidence."— {Times, Aug. 13, I794-) 

11 On Tuesday last, the corpse of a Gentleman, as it was 
proceeding in a hearse to the Burial Ground, was arrested by 
a Sheriff's officer and his followers, under a warrant as usual 



314 Old Times. 

granted against the body. The friends who followed, imme- 
diately left their coaches, and told the officer, if he chose, he 
was welcome to the body, but he should have neither coffin, 
shroud, nor any particle in which the body was enveloped ; 
and if he took them by force, he should be indicted for a high- 
way robbery, as those matters were the property of the Executors ; 
nay, they went further, and said, that as the deceased had, by 
his will, bequeathed his body to the Executors, no execution 
would hold good against the corpse, the process must be 
against them. The Bailiff, very properly being persuaded that 
the spirit of the law meant a living, and not a dead body, 
marched off without insisting on the legality of his capture. 
This is the first instance of the kind that has happened since 
the arrest of the dead body of a Sheriff of London, not many 
years since." — {Times, Sept. 5, 1794.) 

" To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. 

" Sir, — Leaving a shop in the City a few days ago, I fell into 
a reverie with the thoughts of w r hat trade would come to next 
century : how it would be conducted, and by what description 
of persons : as in the shop I had just left, one servant said to 

another, ' Do you know were Master S is gone ' ? 

Another answers, Mr. R (which was an apprentice) 

knows : ask him. Presently came down stairs a maid servant, 
to enquire whether all the gentlemen (meaning the shopmen) 
would come to dinner. Half these gentlemen were booted, as 
if going to take a morning's ride. O tempore ! O mores ! " — 
(Times, Sept. 30, 1794.) 

" The Glove Manufacturers in the different counties, will no 
doubt make the most of the Princess of Wales's delicate 
hand : but there is something more than ordinarily ludicrous 
in the extravagant anticipation of a Shopkeeper, at the West 
End of the Town, who puts up in Roman characters, " Wed- 
DiNG-ring maker to the Princess Caroline of Brunswick." 
— (Times, Nov. 15, 1794.) 

The Lady Lade, here mentioned, once rode a race on 
horseback at New Market — but lost it : — 



Old Times. 315 

" Lady Lade and Mrs. Hodges are to have a curricle race at 
Newmarket, at the next Spring Meeting, and the horses are 
now in training. It is to be a five mile course, and great sport 
is expected. The construction of the traces is to be on a 
plan similar to that by which Lord March, now Duke of 
Queensbury, won his famous match against time. The odds, 
at present, are in favour of Lady Lade. She runs a grey mare, 
which is said to be the best horse in the Baronefs stables" — 
(Times, Dec. 20, 1794.) 

"The following circumstance is extraordinary beyond 
parallel : — On Tuesday se'nnight died, on her return from 
Bath, Miss Henrietta Dickenson, the fourteenth daughter of 
the late John Dickenson, Esq. of East Place, in Yorkshire, 
having attained precisely that age at which each of her 13 
sisters died." — {Times, Dec. 22, 1794.) 

" Crosthwaite Church, in the Vale of Keswick, Cumberland, 
hath five chapels belonging to it. The Minister's stipend is 
five pounds per annum, and goose grass, or the right of com- 
moning his geese : a whittle gate, or the valuable privilege of 
using his knife for a week at any time, at any table in the 
parish ; and lastly, a hardened sark, or a shirt of coarse linen : 
whereas'the Rectory of Winweck, a small village in Lancashire, 
is the richest living in England. The Rector is Lord of the 
Manor, and has a glebe of ^"1400 annual rent. The whole 
living is worth ^3000 a year." — {Times, Dec. 26, 1794.) 

" At Hanworth Booths, a public-house near to Lincoln, a 
few days ago, a man dropped a Boston Bank Bill, value five 
guineas, which momentarily disappeared, and a strict search 
was made without producing any favourable effect. At length 
a woman present recollected a playful whelp chewing something 
apparently white. This observation consigned the life of the 
poor dog to an immediate sentence and he was instantly 
hanged, and his thorax opened, wherein the lost bill was 
found in a mangled state : but nevertheless the purport of the 
paper was evidently discoverable, and cash to the amount was 
got for it at the Boston Bank." — {Times, Jan. 14, 1795.) 

" In the various researches made throughout the house of 



316 Old Times. 

Langleys, the seat of John Jolliffe Tuffnell, Esq. in Essex, 
two caskets of family Jewels have been found concealed 
amongst old linen, and near ^150,000 in specie, behind the 
books in the library, the chief part of which sum he is sup- 
posed to have sold out of the funds, with a view of purchasing 
some advertised estates in that county." 

" It is worthy of remark, that the number of deaths in this 
metropolis, within the last few months past, amounts to double 
what it ever has been, within the same space of time, since 
the plague, which desolated London in the last century." 
{Times, Feb. 20, 1795.) 

" So great has been the mortality in the metropolis, that the 
Undertakers, like the distressed Prompter we read of, have 
been obliged ' to mow away brown.' A hearse with bay 
horses was actually observed in one of the many melancholy 
processions in the course of last week." — (Times, March 7, 
I795-) 

" We are informed there is a„ Cask now building at Messrs 
Meux and Co.'s Brewery, in Liquor-pond Street, Grays Inn 
Lane, the size of which exceeds all credibility, being designed 
to hold twenty thousand barrels of porter ; the whole expense 
attending the same will be upwards of ;£ 10,000." — {Times, 
April 1, 1795.) 

" Numbers, it is said, have gone into the King's Bench and 
Fleet Prison, under an idea that there would be an Act of 
Grace, on account of the Prince's marriage — but no such act 
is to take place." — {Times, April 27, 1795.) 

" In the absence of our Reporter, we understand that Mr. 
Mainwaring, on Monday, presented a Petition to the House 
of Commons signed by above 10,000 Livery Servants, against 
the Employing of Foreigners in that capacity ; which not being 
seconded, was not received." — (Times, April 30, 1795.) 

Advt.— ASTROLOGY. Mrs. NEWTON respectfully in- 
forms her friends and the Public, that she continues at No. in 
in Wardour St. Soho, where she may be consulted on Plane- 
tary Influence, as it relates to, involves, and guides all the 



Old Times. 317 

Events and Occurrences, as Marriages, Legacies, Possession 
of Wealth, Attainment of any particular Desire, the State of 
an Absent Friend by Sea or Land, or whatever can interest 
our Hopes, or agitate our Fears. The private Door in Port- 
land St., and the Name under the one-pair-of-stairs window." 
— ( Times, May 6, 1795.) 

Medicinal Waters were in great repute, and if there 
were any spring, at all charged with mineral matter, 
near the Metropolis, it was a good thing for the pro- 
prietor. They existed at the Beulah Spa, Norwood — Spa 
fields, Bermondsey — Hampstead — Clerkenwell — Holy- 
well Street, and at this " Duck and Dog " St. George's 
Fields. This was a famous suburban publichouse — much 
as the Welsh Harp is nowadays — where shooting matches 
at small birds was a favourite pastime. 

"Advt— DOG AND DUCK SPA AND BATH, St. 
Georges Fields. — J. Hedger respectfully informs the Public, 
that the Gardens of the above Spa are open for the reception 
of those who wish to drink the Waters on the spot, at the 
usual terms of 3d. each person. The general salubrity of this 
Spa is well known : and its happy medicinal effects in Scor- 
butic, Scrophulous, and eruptive Complaints : as well as in 
the Gravel, and several other Disorders, have been long and 
incontestibly established. It will be sent to any part of the 
town in bottles, corked and sealed at the pump, on receiving 
orders as above. The Bath and Bowling Green are also open 
to Subscribers." — {Times, May 26, 1795.) 

The Mr. Brothers mentioned in the following para- 
graph had been a Lieutenant in the Navy — and held 
most extravagantly visionary religious views — he pre- 
tended to have revelations from the Deity, and set up 
as a Prophet. He was imprisoned in 1794 for fear he 
should create some political disturbance. 

" Many persons were yesterday not a little terrified by St. 



3 18 Old Times. 

Paul's clock 1 striking 10 three times within an hour, expecting 
every moment, that Mr. Brothers 's prophecy was about to be 
fulfilled, which had appointed some dreadful calamity to befal 
the City of London before the 4th day of June instant." — 
(Times, June 4, 1795.) 

In the next paragraph, we must bear in mind 
the difference in the value of the Currency then and 
now. 

" It is with infinite pleasure we hear, that the Bishops in 
their respective dioceses, in conjunction with the opulent 
pluralists and other beneficed Clergy, are advancing the sti- 
pends, and making contributions, for their necessitous Curates, 
in these times of scarcity. A liberality (or rather an act of 
justice) which most probably originated with the Bishop of 
London, who declared in his Charge to the Clergy of his 
dioceses, as long since as the year 1790, that he would licence 
no Curate to a single church under £50, nor to two under 
^70 per an."— (Times, Aug. 13, 1795.) 

" That practical bulls are not confined to Ireland, take the 
following specimen : A tradesman of this city, out of charity, 
took a French boy into his family, who was sent out one 
evening in a great hurry for butter. His haste threw him into 
the kennel, butter and all. This was an unfortunate mishap : 
the dirt he could scrape off, but that partial adhesion of water 
to grease could not so easily be removed. At last he hit upon 
an experiment : The maid was bawling out for the butter — 
'Well, well,' quoth Jaques, 'you shall have it quickly. I 
had the misfortune to wet it, and have just hung it up 
on a string, before the great stove — it will be dry in a 
moment, for it dripped before I came away.'" — (Times, Aug. 
21, I795-) 

" What would our forefathers have thought to see a board 
with this inscription : — ' With the nicest taste, and by men most 
exquisite for their professional abilities ' over a Barber's shop ? " 
— (Times, Aug. 21, 1795.) 



Old Times. 319 

" EPIGRAM. In utramque paratus. 

" How shall we Dr. Drawl obey, 
His different counsel keep : 
Whose Text advises ' Watch and pray,' 
Whose Sermon bids you ' Sleep.' " 
—{Times, Aug. 27, 1795.) 

" In an advertisement addressed to a young lady who has 
eloped, she is most earnestly requested to return to her most 
disconsolate parents : but it is added, that if she does not 
choose to come herself, she is most particularly desired to send 
the key of the tea chest /" — (Times, Sept. 4, 1795.) 

" The grand match of Cricket, for one thousand guineas, 
between Kent and All England, was some days since ter- 
minated at Dandelion, 1 in favour of Kent." — (Times, Sept. 15, 

1795) 

" A Clergyman in Essex, who had long farmed his tythes 
alternately among his parishioners, began at last to suspect 
that the rogues endeavoured to keep the income of his small 
living still less, and so determined, this year at least, to take 
his tythes in kind. To ' Cheat the Parson ' is one of the 
oldest jokes in the history of agriculture, and stands on the 
same authority with the wittier malevolence of distressing him. 
These gentlemen, determined not to be behindhand with their 
predecessors : and, in the last harvest, sent to the Parson to 
take away his hay the moment it was cut down, alleging, that 
as soon as it was cut into swathes, it was no longer grass, and 
that he might turn it, and cook it, himself. Rather than ' go to 
law' the Parson submitted, and took his next Sunday's text on 
brotherly kindness, beginning thus — ' Brotherly kindness may 
be divided into three parts — domestic affection — social love — 
and charity : from all which proper inferences may be drawn 
for instruction. Thus brethren, I give you a sermon in swathes 
— you may turn it, and cook it, yourselves.' The plan suc- 
ceeded ; his parishioners doubled the income, acknowledging 

1 Dent de Lion, Margate, 



320 Old Times. 

it even then less than it should be : and thus, what justice, and 
law, might have kept from him for years, was given up to a 
clerical joke" — {Times, Sept. 19, 1795.) 

" A curious circumstance occurred here (Brighton) yesterday. 
Sir John Lade, for a trifling wager, undertook to carry Lord 
Cholmondely, on his back, from opposite the Pavilion, twice 
round the Steine. Several ladies attended to be spectators of 
this extraordinary feat of the dwarf carrying a giant. When 
his Lordship declared himself ready, Sir John desired him to 
strip. ' Strip ! ' exclaimed the other : ' why surely you promised 
to carry me in my clothes ! ' 'By no means,' replied the 
Baronet. ' I engaged to carry you, but not an inch of clothes. 
So therefore, my Lord, make ready, and let us not disappoint 
the ladies,' After much laughable altercation, it was at length 
decided that Sir John had won his wager, the Peer declining 
to exhibit in puris naturalibus." — {Times, Oct. 2, 1795.) 

What would the writer of the following have thought 
if he could only have seen Girton and other cognate 
female Colleges ? 

" Nobody can doubt of the use and advantage of Boarding- 
Schools in an immense capital like this. When a Tradesman's 
daughter is taught to jump a dance, to play a tune, and spit 
French, she is fit for any thing — but a wife." — {Times, Oct. 17, 

I795-) 

" An amiable great lady, though very accomplished in the 
English language, now and then makes some innocent mis- 
takes. She lately asked Lady Jersey if her child would not 
like new milk?" — {Times, Nov. 23, 1795.) 

"A Gentleman lamenting the robbery committed at Mr. 
Erskine's house last week, after enquiring the particulars, 
said, he ' hoped none of the Family were alarmed ? ' ' No,' 
replied Mr. E., 'but I wish they had.'" — {Times, Dec. 23, 

I795-) 

" The name of Merchant of London will be as common in 
London as in France. A fellow who keeps a caricature shop 



Old Times. 321 

in Oxford-Road,' has the impudence to write in large characters 
against his house, Caricature Merchant. 

u We think the Magistrates are deficient in their duty, when 
they permit such a number of obscene prints to be exposed 
in their windows. It is well known that some of them have 
likewise rooms in their houses, where they expose those 
prints to debauch the rising generation, and have agents at 
the public seminaries, where they introduce them among the 
boys." — (Times, Dec. 25, 1795.) 

" The Confectioners begin to tremble from the fear that there 
will not be frost enough to enable them to lay in a stock of 
ice sufficient for the consumption of the ensuing summer. Ice 
is become so much a necessary of life in this climate, that the 
Island has not always produced a sufficient quantity for the 
supply of the inhabitants, and many vessels sent to Norway 
have returned freighted with this new luxury. How would 
Queen Elizabeth's Maids of Honour have stared at iced 
oranges after a hot dinner ? They would probably have given 
them the same emphatical appellation with a late English 
Admiral—; painted snow balls." — (Times, Jan. 22, 1796.) 

" The vast estate of the Duke of Portland, in Marybone, 
cost his ancestors, about 100 years ago, but ^9000; and the 
estate of Mr. Berners, (all the streets about the Middlesex 
Hospital) now ^"6000 a year, were in the year 1730, at a 
rental of ^330 a year." — (Times, Jan. 25, 1796.) 

" The Balls at Southampton are exceedingly lively, and 
well-attended. The young Ladies are particularly favourable 
to a German Dance, called the Volse: for squeezing, hugging, 
&c, it is excellent in its kind, and more than one Lady has 
actually fainted in the middle of it." — (Times, Feb. 19, 1796.) 

" Thirteen thousand, five hundred vessels, freighted with 
property, to the value of between 60, and 70, millions sterling, 
sailed from, and arrived at, the port of London, in the course 
of a year." — (Times, Aug. 29, 1796.) 

"Campus Nautica may be sailor-latin for a pleasant 
exhibition, though not quite concordical. 'A sailor at Oxford 

X 



322 Old Times. 

some time ago, wished to prove the whole University to be 
sailor-like, and he managed it in this way. 'The Gownsmen 
are Puppes, the Tradesmen are Naves, and the women are 
nautce.' What though the puns don't quite spell, they are not 
less true for all that." — (Times, Feb. 29, 1796.) 

" Lately died, in Scotland, James Anderson, a well-known 
itinerant tinker, at the astonishing age of 114, after carrying 
his budget since his 14th year." — (Times, March 12, 1796.) 

" We learn from Chester, that the Grand Jury at Conway 
Assizes found an Indictment against the Bishop of Bangor, 
his Agent, Chaplain, and two other Divines, for a riot ; and 
also another Bill against the Bishop for an assault ! ! ! " — Times, 
Aprils 1796. 

"There was a Bank Note came into the Bank the other 
day, the interest of which, calculated from the time it had 
been in circulation, amounted to more than ^4300." — (Times, 
April 26, 1796.) 

" Mrs. Mills had fourteen rooms open at her famous Rout 
and Supper, in Piccadilly, the other night. The bill for green- 
peas was seventy-five pounds." — (Times, May 18, 1796.) 

" At one of Lady B 's elegant Entertainments at Ham- 
Common, amongst other amusements provided for her refined 
company, were a pig with a soaped-tail and a smock-race. A 
Great Number of young women were collected by curiosity, 
but none of them could be prevailed upon to contend for the 
last prize. They declared ingenuously, that they only came 
for curiosity, as they thought her Ladyship and her Company 
were to run for it." — (Times, June 29, 1796.) 

" ' I should like to be an emigre] said Mr. V n the 

other day. ' Why so ? ' answered a gentleman present. ' Be- 
cause,' he replied, ' the emigrants are the only people in town 
who know how to amuse themselves.' 

" And surely nothing can exceed the refined elegance of the 
balls given by some of the emigrated Ladies, where the widows 
of twenty guillotined poor souls, trip the merry country-dance 
with all the swiftness of a fairy. We must., however, observe 
that these eminent dancers disdain the name of emigrces, and 



Old Times. 323 

call themselves Americaines, from the property they possess 
in the West Indies, in order to avoid the reproach of thus 
squandering the superfluities of their incomes, which would be 
better employed in comforting so many unfortunate families, 
driven from their own country." — (Times, Aug. 1, 1796.) 

"A DAY AT MARGATE. 

" Rose at seven ; went to Sayer's Bathing House, set my 
name down on the slate : took a walk on the Pier. Came 
back and waited a quarter of an hour, then bathed. Not a 
little delighted with the idea of realising in some degree la 
theorie des senHmens agreables by dipping in the same ocean with 
the sea nymphs from the City. Returned to my lodgings to 
dress for breakfast. Finding nobody in the Coffee-room, went 
back to the Pier, arrived at the happy moment, just as a hoy 
was vomiting out its sick : witnessed, as Peter Paragraph says, 
the Queen of France abuse, like a drab of Drury, one of the 
passengers. The case seemed a strong one, and well made 
out on the part of the Lady, but produced, as far as I saw, no 
conviction. 

"Went to breakfast at Benson's, having first called at the 
Post-Office, and found not sorted on the door : eat my shilling's 
worth, one buttered roll, one dry toasted, and one cold ditto : 
heard who had won, or lost, at whist, and billiards, the night 
before ; read the newspapers, and wrote a letter. Went over 
the way to Silver's library, who at my request gave me the 
choice of three rides, observing, that I might take a little of 
each by going round by Kingsgate, the North Foreland, and 
Broadstairs to Ramsgate, then crossing over to the Camp, and 
figuring in by Dandelion. 'What a charming General' (said I) 
'spoilt in a Toyman. How you understand tactics, Mr. Silver!' 
' Used to it all my life, Sir,' (said he with a pleasing flippancy) 
'plan rides for the company daily all over the Island.' Set 
out with the carte du pays in my pocket : visited all the places 
in it, and finished with the cricket match, and the place of the 
public breakfast. Heard a lady say she had won two lotteries, 
and saw Tom Lord run without winning a notch. Went to the 
ordinary in the gardens at 6s. 6d. a head, for cold chicken, 
and roast lamb, with a haunch of venison given by a Noble 



324 Old Times. 

Lord, who, very kindly, having helped himself to the first slice, 
sent it on. The heat on the cricket ground was intense. I 
was sorry I did not bring my white hat : but a remedy was at 
hand, as I learnt afterwards, if I had been ingenious enough 
to have tied a white handkerchief round the crown of my 
black one. Having finished my second breakfast, I rode home 
to dine at Margate. The green where the breakfast was, was 
much cooler than the burning cricket field, having the advan- 
tage of being shaded by the trees in the garden at its back ; 
but I found I was out of luck, as there was no dancing, and, 
indeed, at the public breakfast, it sometimes happens, that the 
wagtails, and the yellow-hammers from the Capital are so 
numerous, and frisky, that the humming birds, the cockatoos, 
and the birds of Paradise of the higher order won't always 
hop with them. Got back to Margate on my pony, for which 
I was to pay i8d. a side, and thought as I rode along on the 
sands, where I should dine. The boarding houses were all 
open to me, on paying for a week, or one guinea. This was 
a great temptation : but having been offered a party at the 
Bowling green, on Prospect Place, I conceived this to be a 
better thing, on account of the humours of the loaded pigeon, 
and the fun of the canting machine, and the fireworks at night. 
I accordingly rode to my lodgings to dress, and went immedi- 
ately to dinner. After dinner proceeded to the libraries, where 
the raffling lists were filling fast : was induced to throw in my 
shillings at Silver's and Were's : from thence passed on to 
Wood's, Surflen's, and Garner's. At Surflen's heard music, 
and several favourite glees : from thence to the playhouse, 
where I was invited to the rehearsal of a new piece, which 
was to be full of good things, if it had been suffered to be 
represented. It was now time to go to supper : I accord- 
ingly returned to the Coffee House, and from thence to the 
Billiard Room, where there was a violent cry of swindler, 
black-legs, and pickpocket, at which Mrs. Benson interfered, 
whilst her husband walked coolly up and down the Piazza, not 
venturing to intrude. The obnoxious person being turned 
out, and order restored, I retired at one o'clock in the 
morning. EPHEMERIS." 

■—{Times, Oct. 2, 1795.) 



Old Ti7nes. 



325 



Fancy seeing an advertisement like the following, in 

the Times nowadays : — 

Advt. " A MARE'S to be SOLD, 

About six years old, 
That's warranted perfectly sound : 
Her height's fourteen hands, 
And an inch as she stands, 
And will trot freely all the way round. 
The Mare's to be seen 
Any time that's between 
The hours of twelve, and of three, 
At the Inn called One Bell, 
In the Strand they will tell, 
Price twenty-five Guineas and three." 
— Times, June 17, 1796. 

" RAMSGATE. (Extract of a letter.) 

" Our early season has already begun, and those who are 
fond of cheap lodgings, have made their appearance hirundine 
prima. I assure you, we have City Misses here at this 
moment, each of whom, in the vain idea of rising • A new 
born Goddess from the Sea ' sowces into salt water every 
morning. Our company is of the greater sort. We have Mrs. 
Deputy Plumb, with her naked daughters, who have scarce 
more cloathing than a j^ leaf on them, and imitate their great 
grand-dame Eve in much more even than that. Then we 
have Mrs. Pop from Whitechapel. She came down in state 
in her own job-coach, which was loaded so full with unredeemed 
Articles for family wear, that her dear pledges of domestic 
Love, her daughters, who are the very duplicate of herself, in 
delicacy and beauty, were forced to come in the Hoy. But 
she vows it is so shocking to her feelings, that they never 
shall ride down no more in that nasty sort of water convey- 
ance, though she should spend upon their luxury and elegance 
ten, out of that thirty per cent., which she grinds from the 
necessitous miseries of hard-earned industry. Then we have 
three learned Ladies, who, after the great fatigues of novel- 
writing in the winter, have retired hither to display themselves 
to the vast pleasure, and edification, of some ancient enamo- 
ratus, who would not yield to Old Q himself in pretensions to 
gallantry. In truth, we begin to look gaily, early as it is : and 



326 Old Times. 

I would that the salt-water, for the benefit of the Pops, and the 
Plumbs, who frequent our watering places, could as easily wash 
away the mud of vulgarity, and affectation, from their hearts, 
as it does the rouge from their faces." — {Times, July 8, 1796.) 

"BRIGHTON.— The Prince and Princess of Wales's 
arrival has been talked of much in London ; but as yet we 
have no signs of it here. The Duke and Duchess of Marl- 
borough pass their time in a very retired manner indeed. 
His Grace walked for some time yesterday evening upon the 
Sieyne ; the company consisted chiefly of opulent Jews, needy 
fortune hunters, broken-down Cyprians, fishermen's daughters, 
and several fat city-dowdies, from the environs of Norton 
Folgate. Her Grace commands the Play on Friday evening, 
which will be her first appearance in public here for this season. 
The Officers of the Blues are the great dashers of the place : 
they associate with no one but their own Corps. The most of 
them keep their blood-horses, their curricles, and their girls. At 
one o'clock they appear on the parade, to hear the word of com- 
mand given to the Subaltern Guard : afterwards they toss off 
their goes of brandy, dine about five, and come about eight to the 
Theatre, Vivent E Amour et Bacchus." — {Times, July 13, 1796.) 

•''Yesterday a curious cricket match was played at Mont- 
pelier Gardens, between n of the Greenwich Pensioners, 
wanting an arm each, against the same number of their fellow 
sufferers with each a wooden leg. Not fewer than 5000 
people were assembled on the occasion, who were highly 
entertained with the exertions of the old veterans of the ocean, 
who never acted against their most inveterate enemy with 
more energy, each party striving to quit the field victorious. 
The evening coming on, the contest could not be decided, 
but it was so much in favour of the Timber toes, as never to 
be recovered by the dint of Arms." — {Times, Aug. 10, 1796.) 

" On Wednesday morning the 1 1 men with one arm, and 1 1 
men with but one leg, were brought by three Greenwich stages 
engaged for that purpose, to the new Cricket Ground, the back 
of the Montpelier Tea Gardens, Walworth, when the match was 
played out, and the men, with one leg, beat the one arms, 
by 103 runnings. After the match was finished, the eleven one- 



Old Times. 327 

legged men ran a race of 100 yards distance, for 20 Guineas, 
and the first three had prizes." — {Times, Aug. 12, 1796.) 

"A new embankment of the River, on the Middlesex 
shore, from Westminster to Chelsea, is just commencing, to 
prevent the encroachments which are making almost daily."— 
(Junes, Aug. 20, 1776.) 

"On Tuesday morning, a young whale came up the River 
as far as Rotherhithe, and was killed near Execution Dock 
after having overset two boats. It measured 19 feet in length." 
— {Times, Aug. 25, 1796.) 

" This day, the Publicans in the Metropolis, and its vicinity, 
have, conformable to an agreement amongst themselves, with- 
drawn from the Public the accommodation of finding them 
Pewter Pots, agreeable to a long established custom, which 
will, of course, occasion great inconvenience to workmen of 
every description, who are employed in raising buildings, 
repairing houses, &c. ; as well as lodgers, and, even, to many 
respectable families. The profits upon Porter, for a length of 
time, have been very considerable, which proves itself beyond 
a doubt, by their acknowledging, in a Bill left at the houses of 
their customers, that they, collectively, sustain a loss, annually, 
of ;£ 100,000 per annum, in Pots, which, by no means, could 
have been afforded, were not their returns somewhat enormous. 
Under that idea, it is presumed, having availed themselves of 
an opportunity, no longer to be liable to losses of that kind, 
in future, they will, as a recompence to the Public, make a 
reduction in price of the necessary article of Porter." — (Times, 
Sept. 2, 1796.) 

"The late determination of several of the Publicans, to 
alter the established mode of serving their outdoor customers, 
with quart, and pint pots, seems to have been copied from an 
old resolution of a certain Borough, which ran thus : ' Re- 
solved, that the best means of preserving our lamps from 
being broken, is to take them down by night, and put them 
up in the day.' Such of the Publicans as have come into this 
new regulation, seem to estimate the loss of a few pots, be- 
yond that of the most respectable of their customers. It is, 
however, very probable, that the Small-Beer Brewers will 



328 Old Times. 

profit by this circumstance, as table-beer may be ordered in by 
those who cannot be served any longer in the usual manner." 
— {Times, Sept. 21, 1796.) 

"The university of Oxford has lately printed, at its own 
expence, to be distributed gratis among the French Clergy who 
have taken refuge in Great Britain {ad Usum Cleri Gallicam 
in Anglia exulaniis, as the title states) 2000 copies of the 
Vulgate of the New Testament, which is the Latin version used 
by the Roman Church in all Public Prayers. 

" The Marquis of Buckingham, distinguished for his muni- 
ficence towards the Clergy, has likewise caused to be printed 
at his expence, 2000 copies at the same press, and for the same 
use. The University of Oxford has sent its copies to the vener- 
able Bishop of St Pol de Leon, for distribution, accompanied 
by a letter, analogous to the generous sentiments which dictate 
this honourable mark of esteem for the French Clergy, who are 
fully sensible of the value of the gift." — {Times, Oct. 25, 1796.) 

"Christmas Eve, 1796, will be recorded hereafter, as the 
Frost was more rapid, and more rigorous, it is supposed, than 
in 1739-40, or any degree of cold ever experienced in England : 
the quicksilver in a thermometer in Somerset-place sunk from 
28 to 4 degrees above o in 12 hours, 3 degrees below the 
depression of the Mercury in 1794 and 28 degrees below the 
freezing point, while it must necessarily have been still lower 
in the country." — {Times, Dec. 28, 1796.) 

Bartholomew fair was first held a.d. 1 133, and it was 
then the principal mart for the vendors, and buyers, of 
cloth : in fact the name of a street, contiguous to Smith- 
field, where the fair was held, and which has come down 
to us, — " Cloth fair," proves it, were there any need. 
Of late years it got a nuisance, and public opinion 
demanded its dissolution. The shows were discontinued 
in 1850, and the fair was proclaimed, for the last time, 
in 1855. We see by the following paragraph, from the 
Times, what was thought of it by decent-minded people, 
as far back as 1796. 



Old Times. 329 



"BARTHOLOMEW FAIR. 

"The various troops of itinerant Comedians, Showmen, 
Ropedancers, Jugglers, Conjurors, Fortune Tellers, Giants, 
Dwarfs, wild Beasts, learned Beasts, and every lusus natures that 
can be collected throughout the Kingdom, with all the appen- 
dages of immorality, and vice, were on Saturday put in legal 
possession of Smithfield, as the theatre of their achievements. 
When we add to these, the numerous tribe of pickpockets, 
ring-droppers, and sharpers of every description, we cannot but 
sincerely regret, that a scene, productive of so much idleness, 
and debauchery, should be sanctioned by the letter of the law, 
while the spirit of it shudders at the toleration of such excesses. 

" The purposes for which this fair was held by its original 
tenure were of a nature directly opposite to those to which it 
is now prostituted. They went to the encouragement of in- 
dustry by the previous manufacture, and subsequent sale, of 
necessary articles ; but they are now made subservient to cor- 
rupt the public mind by the most abandoned, and dissolute, 
manners. The motley multitude that infests the fair, are the 
more audacious in their conduct, from knowing that they are 
warranted in their proceedings, at least by the appearance of 
law, which sanctions this annual ribaldry. 

" We seriously lament, that this ' congratulation l of living 
vapours ' so foul and pestilential to society, should be suffered 
to exist in the metropolis, and that the Chief Magistrate of the 
City of London should be annually compelled to degrade his 
dignity as the principal guardian of the public peace and 
morals, by going in state, to license a scene, which constantly 
terminates in the most fatal abuses." — (Times, Sep. 5, 1796.) 

" At the general Meeting of the Magistrates for the division 
of Kensington, on Saturday last, complaints were made not 
only by the Bishop of London, as Lord of the Manor, but by 
other respectable inhabitants thereof, of a nuisance that has 
prevailed from time to time on Wormholt Scrubs by bull- 
baiting, to the great annoyance of the neighbourhood, and the 
disturbance of the public peace, when the Magistrates came to 
the laudable resolution of issuing warrants to the High, and 

1 Sic in original. 



33° Old Times. 

Petty, Constables of the Division, requiring them to exert their 
utmost endeavours to prevent the same in future. And, having 
understood that many Publicans within their division had 
conveyed beer, and other liquors, from their [respective houses 
to Wormholt Scrubs, where they had retailed it during such 
bull-baiting, they determined not to renew their licences." — 
{Times, Sept. 8, 1796.) 

" A few days ago some villains broke into the Lea Church, 
Gloucestershire, and stole a quantity of money, the property of 
a company of singers belonging to the said church. A reward 
of ^20 was immediately offered for discovering the offenders, 
accompanied by a threat that application would be immediately 
made to a conjuror, who lived not far off, to tell who the 
robbers were. The sacrilegious rascals, being convinced that 
the Devil would betray them, by informing the cunning man 
who they were, went in the night to the church, and pushed 
all the money they had taken through a slit in the door, where 
it was found the next morning." — {Times, Oct. 4, 1796.) 

" An ingenious artist has invented a new Coffin, for which 
he has taken out a Patent. In his advertisements he says, he 
thinks no family would like to be without one, and that all who 
have made trial of them, prefer them to anything in that way, 
and recommend them to their friends." — {Times, Nov. 2, 1 796.) 

" We hope the Corporation of Bath will avoid a similar 
mistake as happened when the Duke of York was there last 
year, when the gold box was presented to the Duke, but some- 
how or other, it was forgotten to put the freedom into it." — 
{Times, Nov. 28, 1796.) 

The gushing, and eloquent, George Robins could 
hardly exceed the following : — 

Advt. "RUS in URBE PULCHERRIMAM. To be 
LET furnished, the first, second and third Floors with a 
Kitchen, altogether the most convenient and beautiful little 
Dwelling in Europe. Satisfactory references will be required. 
Enquire at Messrs &c." — {Times, Oct. 14, 1796.) 

" Lady E. being lately complimented upon her excellent 
complexion, assured her friend it was owing to her custom of 
dipping into cold water every morning. ' But_I see,' said she, 



Old Times. 331 

' you don't believe me.' ' Pardon me,' said the Gentleman, 
' if your Ladyship said you bathed in the Red Sea, I should 
have believed you.'" — (Times, Nov. 24, 1796.) 

" Last Sunday, agreeable to his sentence in the Ecclesias- 
tical Court, a Butcher of Newport Market, did penance in 
St. Ann's Church, for scandalizing a neighbour's character." 
— (Times, Dec. 2, 1796.) 

" There is a Club in St. James St. called the Transalpine. 
To be a Member, it is indispensable that you have crossed 
Mont Cenis. One of the advantages of modern travelling is, 
to be entitled upon your return to waste your time at home, 
with those who have wasted their's abroad. This is the 
reward of what is called seeing the world : namely, seeing 
those who have seen it too." — (Times, Jan. 25, 1797.) 

" A noble Viscount has instituted a Club, called the Ubi- 
quarians — the Club is ambulatory, and held, in turn, at as 
many chop-houses as there are parishes in the capital. The 
dinner is at half-a-crown, but it costs as much more to those who 
are not good walkers to get at it." — (Times, Jan. 25, 1797.) 

" It is a very curious fact, that the Turkish custom of taking 
opium is beginning to prevail in what are called the first circles 
of London. This dissipation is spreading wide amongst 
female fashion." — (Times, Fib. 10, 1797.) 

" The Gentlemen of the Rainbow (footmen), whose only 
wear is motley, have within these few days, shewn evident 
symptoms of uniting. They declare their wages are very 
inferior in value to their services, and threaten their masters 
with a revolution in their conduct. When pampered valets 
claim an increase of salary, on the ground of meritorious ser- 
vice, a general discharge would certainly be the most effectual 
way of quieting their complaints." — (Times, June 6, 1797.) 

"We are pleased to be able to commend one change of 
fashion, at least, that which has deprived the servants of 
Officers of the cockade in their hats : and we hope to see it 
spread, till it becomes as singular, as it is absurd, to dress up 
a Domestic in the characteristics of the field!" — (Times, 
June 10, 1797.) 



332 Old Times. 

" On Sunday, for the first time, the Civil Power interested 
itself in breaking up what was called Cooper's Fair in the 
Spa Fields, in consequence of the weekly holdings forth of a 
variety of Enthusiasts : such as Mystics, Methodists, Quaking 
Jews, &c. One of the latter description being eager for per- 
secution, insisted upon going into confinement, and was con- 
veyed to Clerkenwell Bridewell." — {Times, July 20, 1797.) 

"On the 25th of February, died in the Barony of Ivereagh, 
in the County of Kerry, Ireland, in the 112th year of his age 
Daniel Bull Macarthy Esq. He had been married to five 
wives : he married the fifth, who survives him, when he was 
84 and she 14, by whom he had twenty children, she bearing 
a child every year. He was very healthy : no cold could 
affect him : and he could not bear the warmth of a shirt in 
the night time, but put it under his pillow, for the last seventy 
years. In company he drank plentifully of rum, and brandy, 
which he called naked truth ; and when, out of complaisance 
to other gentlemen, he took claret, or port, he always drank 
an equal glass of rum, or brandy, to qualify those liquors : this 
he called a wedge. He used to walk eight, or ten, miles in a 
winter's morning with greyhounds, and finders, and seldom 
failed to bring home a brace of hares." — {Times, Aug. 5, 1797.) 

" On Sunday morning, about five o'clock, ten Police officers 
came to Norwood. in three hackney-coaches, threw down all 
the gypsey tents, and exposed about 30 men, women, and 
children, in the primitive state of man. They carried them 
to prison, to be dealt with according to the Vagrant Act. 

" It appears that they have made good harvest, this summer, 
of female credulity, and have often gained a guinea on a 
Sunday. Not only young girls, panting for matrimony, have 
been their dupes, but the well experienced dames, curious to 
trace the steps of their dear spouses, have paid liberally for 
discovery, as the following story will prove : On Thursday, as 
two Gentlemen, who dined at Norwood, were looking out of 
a window, they observed a respectable, well-dressed woman in 
deep consultation, for a sum paid to the old gypsey. They 
observed the good woman greatly agitated, and heard her ask 
1 If she was sure it was true ' ? On being answered ' As sure 
as God was in heaven' she gave the gypsey a further sum, 



Old Times. 333 

and made further enquiry, and at last gave her a good pocket- 
handkerchief, and departed seemingly full of vengeance. The 
gentlemen, curious to learn the nature of the good woman's 
consultation, sent for the old gypsey, who candidly told them, 
that she enquired of her if her husband was continent, and 
that she answered he was not, and thereby obtained three 
presents instead of one."— (Times, Aug. 22, 1797-) 

Partridge shooting began on 14th September then, 
instead of the 1st as now. 

FOURTEENTH OF SEPTEMBER. 

" Bemired up to the knees, wetted from head to foot by the 
incessant rain, fatigued and disappointed, the Cocknies yester- 
day returned from their annual field-sport, with very little game 
indeed. A detachment from Cheapside, which had filed off 
early in the morning, toward Hampstead, with the locks of 
their fowling-pieces wrapped up in their handkerchiefs, were 
so galled by the rain, that they got no further than Old Mother 
Red Cap's, where they diverted themselves all day with firing 
from a window at some Dutch-pins in the skittle ground. 
One of these pins was mortally wounded in the belly by Ensign 
Tight Breeches, a man milliner's foreman, who drove a ball 
into it, at the amazing distance of two yards, without letting 
the gun fall out of his hand. 

" Six journeymen weavers, from Spital-fields, who went in a 
chaise cart, to Ealing, with two guns, were rather more for- 
tunate, in respect to Game. They killed a lame hen at Acton, 
shot one goose on the Common, wounded a large sow, and 
filled their pockets and Game-bags with turnips, and cabbages. 
They imagined they sprung a pheasant near Gunnersbury 
House,— but it proved to be an old turkey-ccck. At Eleven, 
they returned, very wet, and very drunk, having lost one of 
their guns, and broke the stock of the other, by flinging it at 
a tame rabbit, in a farmer's yard. 

" Four gentlemen from Leadenhall-Market, who went on the 
long-coach to Woolwich, as there are partridges in that part of 
Kent, killed two crows in Hanging-Wood Lane, blinded a 
jackass near the Warren, and wounded a sparrow, several 
feathers being perceived to drop from its wings. They had 



334 QM Times. 

tolerable good sport with a bat, their terriers being of an 
excellent breed, and having worried a flock of ducks in a 
ditch, and killed one, they returned from Partridge shooting 
about nine at night, very much fatigued indeed. 

" Five gentlemen who went sporting from Kent Bar to 
Lewisham, notwithstanding the wetness of the day, had toler- 
able good luck. 

" They belonged to the Trained Bands, and depended more 
upon their bayonets, than their guns. At the Half- Way-House 
they killed a fine buck-cat, as he was watching a chaffinch. 
From the Half-Way-House to New-Cross Turnpike, every 
sparrow was affrighted by the noise of their guns : but the rain 
by this time having completely wetted the locks, and damped 
the powder, they were obliged to charge with bayonets, and 
every tree bore marks of their prowess, to the Lion and Lamb 
at Lewisham, where they dined, got drunk, killed two hogs, 
and a Chinese sow, and, in the evening, were carried home by 
the Lewisham stage. 

" St. George's Fields, once the mart of London sportsmen, 
being now almost covered with houses, very few prentice-boy 
gunners were seen there. The birds which now inhabit that 
quarter, are many of them jail-birds, and if the new Magistrates 
were to sport their authority a little more than they do, they 
might bring down some of the most dangerous game with 
which a neighbourhood was ever infested. 

" Very few were the sportsmen on Blackheath, to the great 
joy of sheep and jackasses, and to the safety of stage-passen- 
gers, who were often endangered by the random shot of those 
one-day sportsmen. As to partridges, their lives were in no 
danger, not one of those sportmen out of fifty knowing the 
difference between a partridge and a crow ; besides, as their 
dogs are generally of the bull-dog kind, of the terrier, or the 
fox breed, the game are in very little danger of injury from 
their ability." — (Times, Sept. 15, 1797.) 

"There will be more Powder expended to-day against the 
innocent Partridges, than would drive Buonaparte and his 
crew out of Asia. The Bank Clerks, India House Jemmies, 
Men Milliners, and tippy Apprentices, most loudly complain 
against the enclosures of that Cockney Manor, St. George's 



Old Times. 335 

Fields, bewailing the loss of their sport, and lamenting that 
there is not a sparrow left to exercise their prowess upon." — 
{Times, Sept. 14, 1798.) 

" So great is the rage for watering places, that the Margate 
Packet had, the week before last, one hundred and fifty-two 
passengers on board, who were 27 hours on their passage; 
during the greater part of the time, it rained so as to drive 
them under deck, and made them as comfortable as the people 
in the black hole at Calcutta." — {Times, Sept. 16, 1797.) 

" On Thursday evening last, one George Kent, a Callender, 
in New Compton St., St. Giles's, eat, for a trifling wager, the 
enormous quantity of 30 boiled eggs, a two-penny loaf, and a 
quarter of a pound of butter, in the short space of 27 minutes, 
being three minutes less than the time given to perform it." — 
{Times, Oct. 2, 1797.) 

(Advt.) "GUILDHALL. 

"THREE GUINEAS will be given for a Gentleman's 
Ticket to Dine this Day at Guildhall, by sending it before 
1 2 o'clock, to Mr. Short, Hair Dresser, Bearbinder-lane, near 
the Mansion House." — {Times, Nov. 9, 1797-) 

" Never could any Country boast an equal respect, and even 
partiality, for age, with our own. Our favourite Sultanas are 
grandmothers, at the least: the Actresses that charmed our 
grandfathers return to the stage in the full bloom of their 
wrinkles : and we have boys of seventy, and fourscore, in our 
regiments." — {Times, Nov. 15, I797-) 

" Amongst the great, and worthy, pluralists of the Church, few 
can equal, and none exceed, in spiritual, and temporal, fortune, 
young Dr. Price, nephew to Bishop Barrington ; 1 he is Canon, 
and Prebendary, of Salisbury, worth ^300 per annum, Golden 
Prebendary of Durham, worth ^1200 per annum : and Rector 
of Milksham, worth ;£iooo per annum, and is possessed of 
a temporal fortune of between 2 and ^3000 per annum ! 

" Dr. Moss, a lately appointed Residentiary of St. Paul's, 



1 Shute Barrington. Bishop of Llandaff 1769. Bishop of Salisbury 
1782. Bishop of Durham 1 791. 



336 Old Times. 

worth ;£i2oo per annum, is Chancellor of the Diocese of 
Wells, Prebendary of Wells, Westminster, and Salisbury, and 
also Canon Residentiary of the latter, to which he was elected 
when he was about 24 years of age, on the resignation of his 
father. In addition to the above preferments, Dr. Moss is 
also rector of Newington in Oxfordshire, worth ^600 per 
annum. The present Bishop of Wells, with his family, it is 
computed has received upwards of ;£ 100,000 out of the 
Cathedrals of Salisbury and Wells. He strongly insisted that 
his son should continue his Canonry of Salisbury, which Mr. 
Pitt would not allow." — {Times, Nov. 17, 1797.) 

" In investigating a trivial cause yesterday, at Bow-Street, 
arising from an infamous practice, which we hope will be 
represented to Lord Kenyon, of issuing Marshalsea Court 
Writs for debts of 8s. or 12s., a fraud of some importance was 
discovered. It appears that it was the custom of Publicans, 
when they want to let their houses, to get a number of people 
together, whom they treat with beer. 

"They call them show-men, and this is done for the pur- 
pose of deceiving the persons who come to view their house, 
and to make them suppose it has good custom." — {Times, Nov. 
23- I797-) 

Advt. "PROCESSION TO ST. PAULS. 1 

"To BE LET, a DRAWING-ROOM about 20 feet long, 
the windows nearly level with his Majesty's Carriage. Twenty 
Persons may be comfortably accommodated. It is wished by 
the Proprietor of the above Premises, that the Party may be 
of their own selection : a strange mixture of Company on these 
occasions is unpleasant to most Families who wish to enjoy 
their own society. Price 20 Guineas. Enquire at Salmon's 
Goldsmith, No. 49 facing Old Round Court, Strand, between 
York buildings and the Adelphi." — {Times, Dec. 8, 1797.) 

Advt. "ROYAL PROCESSION. 

" One of the grandest sights since the days of Queen Anne, 
and in all probability we shall never see the like again. 
Those Ladies and Gentlemen who are desirous of being 

1 To return thanks for Admiral Duncan's victory over the Dutch fleet. 



Old Times. 337 

accommodated with one of the best views in the City to see 
the procession (not only as it passes by, but of seeing the 
Company go into Church), will apply to No. 28 Ludgate- 
Street, the corner of Ave Maria-Lane, next the Churchyard. 
The Front Seats in the Dining Room are only 2 Guineas, the 
second seats i\ guinea, third seats 1 Guinea: seats in the 
shop, which is very pleasant 1 Guinea each : a two pair front 
room, with 3 windows, for a large party, at 20 Guineas for the 
day, an excellent prospect. Also a 3 pair of stairs front room 
which has a capital view of the Churchyard, for 12 Guineas. 
Ladies and Gentlemen will be accommodated with sight of the 
procession at the west end of the Town, where they may have 
small rooms, or large, on moderate terms, that is to say, a very 
handsome dining-room for 15 Guineas, a small room adjoining 
for 5 Guineas, large room, 2 pair, for 10 Guineas, small room 
adjoining for 4 Guineas, by applying to Mr. Farrance, Pastry 
Cook, the Corner of Spring Gardens, Charing Cross." — 
{Times, Dec. 12, 1797.) 

"The eight cream-coloured horses belonging to the King's 
State-Coach, are every morning drove to St. Paul's Church to 
train them to the flags in Queen Ann's Church-yard." — 
(Times, Dec. 14, 1797.) 

"In England the amount of French prisoners is 23,600. 
In France the British do not exceed 1500." — {Times, Dec. 
i4, I797-) 

In an article of half a column length {Times, Jan. 8, 
1798), treating of the French Prisoners of war — the follow- 
ing is the concluding paragraph : — 

" In respect to the quantity of their allowance, we 
state, on the most certain authority, that their sub- 
sistence is a pound of bread, and half a pound of good 
fresh beef, every day in the week, together with a full 
proportion of vegetables. A subsistence which thou- 
sands of our own poor would be glad to have." 

"The firm conduct of our Government in refusing any 

Y 



338 Old Times. 

longer to make advances for the maintenance of French 
Prisoners, has had the good effect of obliging the Executive 
Directory to come forward with the necessary supplies, and 
as the French agents have now the whole management of 
this concern, we shall no longer be subject to their odious 
calumnies against the humanity of this country. 

The number of French prisoners in England, amounts to 
about 22,0003 the Dutch prisoners are about 2,500. The 
daily cost of these men, since the French agents had the 
charge of them, has been ,£1,370 sterling a day (about 
is. 'id. each): and their annual expence is upwards of One 
Million sterling. The number of English prisoners in 
France does not exceed 4000." — (Times, Feb. 27, 179S.) 

" Southampton was thrown into consternation on Saturday 
morning, by an event which was variously reported by different 
narrators in the course of the day ; but, 'ere night, all ideas 
of French spies, false Emigrants, &c, subsided, and the event 
turned out to be ' that three French prisoners from Por- 
chester, had made their escape to Southampton.' A party 
of pleasure had engaged WasselVs vessel to go to the Isle of 
Wight. At an early hour on Saturday morning, on repairing 
to the Quay, the man could not discover his pleasure boat. 
Every one was concerned for his loss, and many hours elapsed 
before any tidings could be heard of her, when some fishing 
boats gave information that they had met her near Calshot 
Castle, about three o'clock in the morning, but had no 
suspicion she had been run away with. In the evening, news 
arrived, that in steering, to keep as far from Spithead as possible, 
the Frenchmen were near running on shore at Ride. This cir- 
cumstance convinced the pilots that Wassell was not on board 
when they went to her assistance, secured the three French 
men, and saved the vessel for the owner." — (Times, July 2, 

I799-) 

"'To which university,' said a lady, some time since, to 
the late sagacious Dr. Warren, 'shall I send my Son?' — 
' Madam,' replied he, ' they drink, I believe, near the same 
quantity of port in each of them.'" — (Times, Feb. 19, 1798. 



Old Times. 339 

It was in this year that Jenner first wrote on Vaccina- 
tion. The following paragraph refers to Inoculation, 
which was introduced into England, circa 17 18, by Lady 
Mary Wortley Montague, who had seen it practised in 
Turkey : — 

"Memento narare multis officium alterius. — Mr. W. Holt, 
Surgeon, of the parish of Tottenham High Cross, has 
generously undertaken (within the last two months) to inocu- 
late the poorer part of the inhabitants of the parish, for -the 
small pox, which he has done (and that gratis) to the amount 
of some hundreds, the whole of which number have done 
well, not one patient excepted. The above act is praise- 
worthy, and will redound much to Mr. Holt's honour. It is 
to be hoped the above example will be followed by other 
Medical Gentlemen, if so, in a few years we shall not see, 
as we now daily do, the ill-effects of that dreadful disease, the 
small pox, in the natural way." — {Times, March 28, 1798.) 

"Previous to the Humane Society's Procession (at the 
London Tavern, next Tuesday) of those who have been 
restored to life this year, an Introductory Dialogue, written 
after the manner of Virgil's pathetic and beautiful pastorals, 
by John Gretton Esqre, will be spoken by two young 
Gentlemen. Rising genius was fully experienced at the last 
Anniversary. What then must not be the gratification to a 
British heart, where to the solemn scene of our resuscitated 
brethren, 1 is superadded the efforts of these able advocates in 
the cause of humanity, and the sublime views of this most 
excellent Institution?" — {Times, April 14, 1798.) 

" ANECDOTE. 

" It is a fact of which we can assure our readers, that the 
following extraordinary Letter was sent to a worthy Baronet 
not a hundred miles from Whitehall. It was tied round the 
neck of an unfortunate animal, who, we are sorry to say, 

1 The persons recovered during the year, by the instrumentality of the 
Society, appeared in solemn procession at the anniversary dinner. 



34° Old Times. 

appears to have been made the victim of party malice, and the 
unfeeling passions of men : 

"THE RATS LETTER. 
(" Health and Fra/ernity.) 

"Sir, — I ama desperate Rat, gained indeed in the present 
opportunity of congratulating you, though lately separated 
from my family and connexions, having been caught in the 
grating of Mr. Pitt's cage, in Downing St., prostrate at his 
feet, I escaped death, and even castration, in the consideration 
that I belong to your worthy fraternity, and upon condition 
that I should inform you of certain truths, however gracing. 
Since the discovery of the conspira/ors, your orations have not 
been undented, for they have not been rational If your 
treaty with them has been ratified, you will be well scratched, 
and so forbear prating for the present. Besides it is a 
desideratum that you should have nothing to say to Mr. 
Grattan, and that you should not Co-operate with the Irish- 
Marats. Let your narrations concerning Ratlsbon, or Ratstadt, 
be moderate, and endeavour to make reparation for all the 
nonsense you have talked, and the mischief you have not 
operated. Sequestrate yourself with your venerated old 
Aunts, and deal out rations of oatmeal, and cheese, to your 
prating brats, whom everybody commisera/es, and arbitrate 
between cowherds, and bullock drivers. Demonstrate that 
you are a wise man in your generation : Exempli gratia, this 
year, having been beat blind by the bulk of bullocks, try next 
to run down your successor in a race of ameliorated Rats. 
Full of admiration, and great gratitude, I give you the fra/ernal 
hug, and rate myself, with great considera/ion, without 
altera/ion. Your gra/eful Yrater (Gra/is) 

" Democrat" 
— ( Times, June 4, 1798.) 

" We are sorry to hear that the Rat that wrote the famous 
letter, was cruelly murdered by the enraged servants. The 
Rat is now said to have been over-driven, and made mad in 
Downing St., in order that he might scratch the Knight into 
the Ca/-aphobia. He anxiously expects thej #z/-astrophe. 



Old Times. 341 

The Rat\ letter has very much exasperated the Worthy 
Baronet to whom he addressed it." — (Times, June 8, 1798.) 

11 Colonel Twiss, and other officers of the engineers, have 
been employed by government to examine a proposition made 
by a Mr. Dodd, for forming a tunnel under the River Thames, 
from Gravesend, to Tilbury." — (Times, July 16, 1798.) 

" Tower Hill is soon to lose that name, and, in compliment 
to the Trinity House, it is in future to be called Trinity 
Square." — (Times, July 16, 1798.) 

They knew how to puff — in those days : — 

" Advt. — Thirty Thousand Pounds gained for Five shillings, 
without a Lottery. A Gentleman of the Navy had, for some 
time, been paying his addresses to a Lady of Fortune, and 
gained her affections : being suddenly ordered off to the West 
Indies, the marriage was deferred until his return. On 
arriving at St. Domingo, he was attacked by the Yellow 
Fever, which appeared externally in scabby eruptions, arising 
from living in too free a manner in that destructive climate, 
which disfigured his face so much, that, on his return to 
England, the Lady was disgusted, and broke off the match. 
This turn so affected the Gentleman that a slow nervous fever 
resulted, which reduced him so low that his recovery was 
despaired of. Fortunately, an officer of the Guards, his 
intimate friend, calling on him, told him he thought the per- 
usal of Dr. Brodum's Guide to Old Age would be of service : 
and, in consequence, purchased a Guide for five shillings, 
which, with the aid of the Dr.'s Botanical Syrup, completely 
restored him, and on calling on the Lady after his recovery, 
she was so well-pleased at his healthy appearance, as to 
immediately consent to unite herself with him, and make over 
a fortune of ^30,000." — (Times, Nov. 20, 1798.) 

" A story is told at Brighton of a certain Baronet having 
been most cruelly imposed upon by some young Bucks, at that 
place, who sent him a pretended letter from the wife of a 
Dentist, requesting a tender interview. The Baronet flew to 



34 2 Old Times. 

her lodgings on the wings of love, but the first person he met 
was her husband. The Baronet, with a ready attention to pro- 
fessional circumstances, said he came to ask advice for the 
toothache: the operator rejoined, that an extraction was the 
most certain cure, and the unfortunate Baronet actually sub- 
mitted to an incision in his jaw, to save the rest of it from 
being broken." — (Times, Nov. 30, 1798.) 

" This being the first day of May, Mrs. Montague will give 
her annual entertainment of roast beef, and plum-pudding, to 
the Chimney-sweepers of the Metropolis, in the courtyard of 
her house in Portman Square, in commemoration of discovering 
her child among them, long after it had been trepanned away." 
—{Times, May 1, 1799.) 

"The donations given by Mrs. Montague, of Portman 
Square, every May-day, proceed from pure benevolence towards 
the distressed poor. The story, which has been generally 
believed, of her having once lost a child, who was trepanned 
from her house, is wholly unfounded." — (Times, May 2, 1799.) 

"The Lady Mayoress is in the straw, and the Bambino, 
according to the customs of the City, is to be rocked in a 
cradle of solid silver. This is a very ancient privilege, and, as 
it costs the City about Five Hundred Pounds, the Aldermen 
will probably look twice, before they elect family men again 
with their wives in the family way." — (Times, July 1, 1799.) 

What occasioned the following ? 

" Such senseless extravagance as eating Bank notes has not 
been known since the French Courtezan, who curled her hair 
with them : or the days of Cleopatra, who swallowed a jewel as 
a rich repast." — (Times, Aug. 22, 1799.) 

The singular belief that used to obtain, and still is 
prevalent, especially among the lower classes, that a man 
might sell his wife to any bidder, provided that he did 
so in open market, and with a halter round her neck, 
was in full force at the latter end of the 18th Century. 



Old Times. 343 

That this belief has not died out may be seen in an 
article on "Wife Selling," by my brother, in "All the 
year Round" 20th Dec. 1884, in which he cites cases 
as recently as 1862, 1870, 1881 — and two in 1882 — in 
one of which, the wife was sold for a glass of ale, and 
the other, for a penny and a dinner. 

" By some mistake, or omission, in the report of the Smith- 
field Market, we have not learned the average price of wives 
for the last week. 

" The increasing value of the fair sex is esteemed by several 
eminent writers as the certain criterion of increasing civiliza- 
tion. Smithfield has, on this ground, strong pretensions to 
refined improvement, as the price of Wives has risen in that 
market from half a guinea, to three guineas and a half." — 
{Times, July 22, 1797.) 

" An Hostler's wife, in the country, lately fetched twenty-five 
guineas. We hear there is to be a sale of wives soon at Christie's. 
We have no doubt they will soon go off well." — {Times, Sept. 
*9, 1797) 

" On Friday a butcher exposed his wife to sale in Smithfield 
Market, near the Ram Inn, with a halter about her neck, and 
one about her waist, which tied her to a railing, when a hog- 
driver was the happy purchaser, who gave the husband three 
guineas, and a crown, for his departed rib. Pity it is, there is 
no stop put to such depraved conduct in the lower order of 
people."— {Times, fuly 18, 1797.) 

"On Saturday evening last, John Lees, steel-burner, sold 
his wife for the small sum of 6d. to Samuel Hall, fell-monger, 
both of Sheffield. Lees gave Hall one guinea immediately, to 
have her taken off to Manchester the day following by the 
coach : she was delivered up with a halter round her neck, 
and the clerk of the market received $d. for toll. It would be 
well if some law was inforced to put a stop to such degrading 
traffic ! ! (Sheffield Register)"— {Times, March 30, 1796.) 



344 Old Times. 

" At the last sale of wives there was but a poor show though 
there were plenty of bidders. One alone went off well, being 
bought by a Taylor, who outbid eight of his competitors." — 
(Times, Dec. 2, 1797.) 

Advt. " To the Curious. J. Harrison begs leave to 
inform his Friends, and the Public, that he has, for sale, a 
great variety of grafted Gooseberry Plants, in pots, with red, 
white, and black Currants growing on each, the fruit of the 
finest flavour : and handsome standard Currant Trees, 5 feet 
high, with red, white, and black, fruit on each, likewise dwarf 
Apple Trees, handsome plants, suitable for the borders of 
pleasure gardens, being full of fine fruit. Gentlemen and 
Ladies are invited to come and view his plants, now the fruits 
are on them, at his Nursery, opposite the Turks Head, half-way 
to Deptford Upper Road." — {Times, Aug. 9, 1799.) 

" When the order for the embargo was received at Graves- 
end, two hoys, the one for Margate, the other for Ramsgate, 
lay off the town, and were immediately subjected to the restric- 
tion. One had nearly 200 persons on board, the other, upwards 
of 150 ; they were obliged to land, and the place not affording 
accommodation for so large, and unexpected, an influx of com- 
pany, a whimsical scene of confusion, disorder, and embarrass- 
ment, ensued : some in carts, &c, got on to Rochester, and Can- 
terbury : but, owing to the march, and embarkation of troops, 
all the carriages, and horses, on the road were engaged, and 
several days elapsed before these unfortunate people reached 
the place of their destination." — (Times, Aug. 19, 1799.) 

" Lately died at Lynn, in her 78th year Miss Mary Breese. 
She never lived out of the parish she was born in, was a 
remarkable sportswoman, regularly took out her shooting 
license, kept as good greyhounds, and was as sure a shot, as 
was in the county. At her desire, her dogs, and her favourite 
mare, were killed at her death, and buried in one grave." — 
(Times, Oct. 8, 1799.) 

" Late on Sunday evening last a beautiful Circassian arrived 
at the Turkish Ambassador's Hotel. She was brought from 



Old Times. 345 

Smyrna in the ' Princess] Capt. W. Lee, as a present from the 
Grand Seignior to his Excellency the Ambassador. She is 
peculiarly elegant, and beautiful, and was escorted hither by 
six black eunuchs. The Ambassador showed great attention 
to Capt. Lee on account of the care he had taken of his 
mistress." — {Times, Dec. 19, 1799.) 

" The fair Circassian has not yet made her appearance in 
public. A very splendid equipage is now building in Long 
Acre for her. Several of our dashing young men of fashion 
have offered themselves as drivers to the Eastern beauty." — 
{Times, Dec. 24, 1799.) 

I have not been able to trace the fate of this lady — she 
was only a nine days' wonder in fashionable society. 





INDEX. 



Abington, Mrs., the actress, 189, 

1 go 
"Academy of Sciences and Belles 

Lettres," 222 
Actresses of good birth, 194, 195 
Adams, Daniel, 23 
Advertisement, curious, in the Times, 

325> 33° 

Albany, Duchess of, 3 

Aldermen, regulate price of bread, 
148 ; visit fraudulent bakers, 150 

Aliens, 16, 22 

All fours, 180 

Ancient Music, Concert of, 226 

Androides, 228 

Anecdote of Lady E., 330 

Angerstein, John Julius, 248, 249, 
261 

Anson, Hon. Thomas, 59 

Anspach, Margrave of, 147, 193, 
216 

Apprentice, cruel treatment of an, 
268 

Archer, Lady, 71, 166, 167, 168, 
169, 177, 179 

Arms, seizure of in Ireland, 44 

Army, strength of, 36 ; patriotic 
gifts to, by ladies, 95 ; convicts 
enrolled, 95 ; French emigrants 
enrolled, 95 ; curious enlistment, 
97, 98 ; kidnapping, 98, 99, 100, 
101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 ; 
young officers, 107, 108 ; soldiers' 
bread, 109 ; bounty for soldiers, 



no; courtmartial, Hi; sale of 
commissions, III, 112; hair 

powder dispensed with, 130 
" Army of England," 42 
Arnold, Dr., musical composer, 196, 

207 
Artificers, enticing, punishment for, 

270 
Ashurst, Mr. Justice, 34 
Assessed taxes, 131, 132 
Assize of bread, 148 
Astrology, 316 
Automata, 228, 229 



B 

Baddeley, the actor, 187 
Bailiffs imprisoned, 268 
Bakers, fraudulent, 150 
Bakewell, Robert, agriculturist, 299 
Ballet and Opera, 204, 211 
Bangor, Bishop of, indicted for 

riot, 322 
Bank Bill, singular recovery of, 315 
Bank of England, 37, 44 
Bank notes, issue of, 37 ; £1 and 

£2, 237 ;. interest on a, 322; 

eating them, 342 
Bannister, the actor, 188 
Barber's shop, inscription over, 318 
Baring, Sir Francis, 288 
Barrington, the pickpocket, 245 
Barrymore, the actor, 188 
Barrymore, Lord, his wager, 298 



348 



Index. 



Bartholomew Fair, history of, 328 ; 
description of, 329 

Bartolozzi, 220 

Bath, its charter, 312 ; its freedom, 
330 

Bath, knights of the, installation 
supper, 114 

Bathing-ladies, 312 

Bear's grease, 58 

Beau, a, 56 

Beef, price of, 146 

Bedford, Duke of, 24, 25, 6l, 185, 
298, 306 

Bellamy, Mrs., 190 

Bernard, Mrs., the actress, 190 

Bigg, W.R., A.R.A., 227 

Billington, Mrs., 189, 225 

Black servants, (Indented), 313 

Blood, a, 54 

Boarding schools, advance in price 
of, 146 

Boarding schools, lady's, 320 

Bonaparte, (see Napoleon) 

Bond Street Lounge, the, 64, 76 

Borouwlaski, Jos., 222 

Boswell, James, 230 

Bounty for soldiers, 1 10 

Bourgeois, Sir Francis, 196 

Bow Street Runners, 244 

Bowes, Mr., 185 

Bowyer, Admiral, 26 

Box-lobby loungers, 200 

Bread, household, recommended by 
Privy Council, 138 ; subscriptions 
to reduce price of to the poor, 
139; noblemen, &c, pledge them- 
selves to eat household bread, 
140 ; to make good bread, 141 ; 
to consume but little, 143, 144 ; 
bread used at the Royal table, 147 ; 
price regulated by the Aldermen, 
148 ; assize of bread, 148 ; short 
weight of, 150 

Bridge water, Duke of, 6 1 

Bridport, Lord, ^8, 39 

Brighton, dress, 52 ; company at, 
326 

Brothers, Lieut, (a pretended pro- 
phet), 317 

Bruni, vocalist, 209 

Brunton, Miss, the actress, 190 

Buck, a, 54 

Buckingham, Marquis of, 42 

Buckinghamshire, Lady, 166, 167, 
168, 172, 177, 179 

" Bull," a, 318 

Bullock'stealing, punishment for, 270 



Burke, Edmund, 16 
Bute, Lord, 304 
Butter, price of, 146 



CAMBACERES, 50 

Camelford, Lord, 93, 94 

Camperdown, Victory off, 42 

" Campus nautica," 321 

Cant phrases, 200, 201 

Canterbury, Archbishop of, 178 

Capital punishment, 246, 265, 266 

Card money," 176 

Cards, unstamped, 181 

Caricature sellers, 320 

Carlisle, Earl of, 43 

Carlisle House, 218, 220, 222, 223 

Cask, large one at Meux's Brewery, 

3l6 
Cassino, 180, 181, 
Cat, funeral of a, 306 
Chamber Music, 225 
Chaplaincy, sale of, 112 
Charing Cross, kidnapping riots at, 

98, 99, 100, ior, 102 
Charlotte, Queen, 2, 5, 6, 7, 26, 31, 

33. 44, 294 
Chatham, Earl of, 29, 305 
Choice spirit, a, 54 
Christmas boxes, 117 
Chudleigh, Miss (afterwards Duchess 

of Kingston), 76 
Cibber, Mrs., 190 
Cipriani, 220 
Circassian, the fair, 344 
Clarence, Duke of, 189, 194, 209, 

216, 295 
Clergyman's stipend, curious, 315 
Clerical pluralists, 335 
Clive, Mrs., the actress, 189 
Clothes, cost of, 62 
Clubs, the Transalpine, 331 ; the 

Ubiquarian, 331 
Coals, price of, 155, 156 
Cockade, disuse of, 331 
Coffin, a patent, 330 
Coin, base, 239, 240, 241, 242, 272, 

273. 306 
Commercial failures, 232, 233, 234 
Commissions in the army, sale of, 

III, 112 
Common Council and dinners, 136 ; 

offer bounty for fish brought to 

market, 137 ; abolition of dinners, 

142 



Index. 



349 



Concannon, Mrs., 171, 172, 177, 179 

Concerts, 226 

Convicts, cost of transportation, 269 ; 

a jocular, 271 
Cooper's Fair, abolition of, 332 
Cornelys, Mdme., 212, 217, 219, 222, 

223 
Cornwallis, Lord, 45 
Corpse seized by bailiffs, 313 
Corresponding Society, 29 
"Coterie, the," 221 
Court dresses, 59 
Covent Garden Theatre, 31 
" Coventry Act," the, 249 
Cricket match for 1000 guineas, 319 ; 

one-armed and one-legged match, 

326 
Croix, M. de la, 42 
Crop, a, 57, 61, 62, 64, 128 
Crouch, Mrs., 189, 205 
" Culloden," Mutiny on board of the, 

85,86 
Cumberland, Duke of, 2-6-220 

256 
Curates, increase of stipend, 318 
Curtis, Sir Roger, 25, 26 



D 

Dandy, a, 56 

Death, singular, 315 

Deaths, extraordinary number of, in 

1795. 3i6 
Debry, Jean, 66 
Debtors, 266, 267, 316, 336 
Dentist, anecdote of a, 341 
Derby, Lord, 185, 189 
Devonshire, Duke of, 129 
Didelot, a dancer, 212, 213 
Dignum, the vocalist, 196 
Dillon, Viscount, in 
Dimsdale, Sir Harry (Mayor of 

Garratt), 289, 290, 292 
Dockwra, 21 
Dogs, tax on, 128 
Dog-kennels, 306 
Dollars, forgery of, 238 ; issue of, 

235, 236, 237, 238 
Don Giovanni, opera of, 209 
Douglas, Capt. Sir A., 87 
Draper's Company, the, 139 
Drury, Anecdote of Captain, 91 
Drury Lane Theatre, 195 
Duels, 275, 276 
Duncan, Admiral, 42 
Dundas, Mr., 84 



Dunstan, Sir Jeffrey (Mayor of 

Garratt), 292 
Durham, Bishop of, 213, 214 



E 

East India Company, 138 

Effingham, Lord, 54 

Egremont, Lord, 185 

Elcho, Lady, 176 

Elections, see Politics 

Elliston, the actor, 188 

Elopement, advertisement respecting 

an, 319 
Elopement with a negro, 268 
Embargo, 344 
Emigrants, French, 276, 277, 278, 

279, 322 
Enlistment, curious, 97, 98 
E. O., 173, 181, 182, 185 
Epigram, on a dull sermon, 319 
Erskine, Mr., robbery at the house 

of, 320 



" Factotum, Isaac," 300 
Farms, large or small, 137, 13S 
Faro, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 

173. 174, 179 

Farren, the actor, 190 

Farren, Miss, 189, 197 

Fast, General, 47 

Feadle, Jimmy Lincum, 56 

Feathers, 75 

Fees to servants, 160 

Fitzgerald, Lord Edward, 44 

Fitzherbert, Mrs., 196, 305 

Fitzroy, Lady Ann, 107, 108 

Food, 135 

Food riots, 28, 261 

Footmen, dissatisfaction of, 331 

Forestalling, 150, 152 

Fox, Charles James, 5, 25, 27, 34, 
169 

France, war with, 18 

Franking letters, 121, 122, 123 

Frederick the Great, 204 

French emigrants, 13, 14, 15, 22, 
276, 277, 278, 279, 338 

French, Invasion of Ireland and 
defeat, 45, 46 

French prisoners, numbers in Eng- 
land, 50, 337 



350 



Index. 



French Revolution, 8, 13, 17, 21, 22 

Frith, John, threw a stone at the 

King, 10 
Frost, great, 4, 37, 328 
Funds, the, 234, 235 
Fuseli, H., 227 



Gallini, Sir John, 208, 209 

Gaming, 166 

Gardner, Admiral, 26' 

Garratt, account of, 290 ; election 

for, 289, 290, 291, 292 
Gell, Admiral, 87 

George III., his illness in 1788, 3 ; 
his recovery, 6 ; thanksgiving, 
goes to St. Paul's, 7 ; stone thrown 
at his coach, 10 ; message to 
Parliament declaring war with 
France, 18 ; inspects the guards, 
20 ; shot at and hissed, 29 ; stone 
thrown into his carriage, 33 ; 
asked to dismiss his Ministry, 41 ; 
gives .£20,000 as patriotic sub- 
scription, 44 ; reviews volunteers 
in Hyde Park, 48 ; inspects vol- 
unteers, 49 ; receives a letter from 
Napoleon, 50 ; eats brown bread, 
147 ; at the theatre, 193; lets his 
cream coloured horses for hire, 
295, 296 

Gibbon, death of, 230 

Giornovici, musical composer, 196 

Gloucester, Duchess of, 106 

Gloucester, Duke of, 2-29, 220, 
256 

Gloves, stamps on, 300 

Gluttonous wager, 335 

Gooseberries, curious, 344 

Gordon, Lady Georgiana, 76 

Gordon, Lord George, I 

Government appointments, sale of, 
117, 118, 119 

Grenville, Lord, 42, 50 

Grey, Charles Earl, 27, 34 

Grey, Mr., M.P., epigram on, 285 

Grosvenor, Lord, 185 

Guadagni, vocalist, 221 

Guildford, Earl of, 24 

Guildhall dinner, ticket for, 335 

Guimard, Mdlle., ballet dancer, 
211 

Gypsies at Norwood/332 



H 

Hair, false, 73, 74 
Hair-powder, 60, 61, 73, 128, 129, 

130 
Halfpence, bad, 239, 240 
Hamilton, Duke of, 152 
Hampden, Lord, 172 
Handbill, curious, 300 
Hanway, Jonas, 56 
Hardy, Thomas, 23, 
Harrington, Lady, 33 
Harrison, the vocalist, 196 
Harvest, bad, 27, 28 
Hastings, Warren, his trial, 2 
Hats, stamp on, 270 
Hats, subscription for, 131 
Hectors, 54 

Highway robberies, 262 
Hill, Sir Rowland, 21 
Hobart, Mrs., 169, 171, 194 
Hogs, number of, 147 
Holland, French occupation of, 26, 

English defeat, 27 
Holman, the actor, 189 
Hood, Sir Alexander, 26 
Horses, the royal cream coloured, 

295. 296, 337 
Horse racing, 184, 185 
Howe, Lord, 25-26-38, 39, 310, 311 
Humbert, General, 45, 46 
Hyde Park, 308 



Ice, 321 

Illuminations, 310, 311 

Incledon, the singer, 188, 206 

Impromptu, an, 300 

Income tax, 132 

Informer, common, punishment of 

a, 271, 272 
Inoculation for small-pox, 338, 339 
Inspection of volunteers, 49 
Insurance against being drawn for 

militia, 112 
Invasion of England, 40, 41 
Ireland, French invasion of, 45, 46 
Ireland, rebellion in, 44, 46 
Ireland, union with England, 47 
Ireland, Sam., 202 
Ireland, W. H., 202, 203 



J 

Jackson, W., musical composer, 
207, 208 



Index. 



35 



Jenner, Dr., 338 

Jersey, Lady, anecdote of, 320 

Jervis, Sir John (Lord St. Vincent), 

4i 

Jessamy, a, 54 

Job-masters, knavery of, 158 

Johnson, Dr. S., 230 

Johnstone, the actor, 189 

Jordan, Mrs., 189, 191, 192, 193, 197, 

216 
Joyce, Rev. Jeremiah, 23 
June, glorious first of, 25, 310, 311 



Kean, Edmund, 189 
Kelly, the vocalist, 196, 1 99, 206, 207 
Kelsey's, 108 

Kemble, John, 187, 191, 196, 203 
Kensington Gardens, 307, 30S 
Kenyon, Lord, 34, 178, 179 
Ketch, Jack, 266 

Kidnapping for the army, 98, 99, 
100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 
Killala, landing of French at, 45 



Lade, Lady, 314 

Lade, Sir John, his wager with Lord 

Cholmondeley, 320 
" Lady's Monthly Museum," 68 
Lake, Lord, 45 

Lashes, one thousand given, 1 1 1 
Law and police, 243 
Lawsuit, a long, 270 
Lawyers, number of, 27 1 
Le Brun, 50 
Lemons, price of, 154 
Letters, franking, 121, 122, 123 ; 

rates for, 123 
Letters of marque, 19 
Lewis, the actor, 190 
Linley, Thos., musical composer, 

207, 208 
Litchfield, Bishop of, 43 
Livery Servants, petition from, 316 
Lloyd's, 26 

Loan, 42 ; subscriptions to, 43 
London, port of, commerce of, 321 
Longevity, 309, 322, 332 
Lorn, Marquis of, 60 
Lotteries, 178, 184 
Lotteries, private, 182, 183 
Lough Swilly, defeat of the French 

off, 46 



Louis XVI., 17 
Loyalty loan, 36 
Lucifer matches, 297 
Ludgate Prison, 266, 267 
Lunatics, treatment of, 298 
Luttrell, Lady Elizabeth, 179 
Luxembourg, Duke of, 305 



M 



Macaroni, the, 53, 274 
Macdonald, John, 55 
Macklin, the actor, 188 
Mackworth, Sir Robert, 59 
Malmesbury, Lord, 35, 42, 293, 294 
Mansion House, riot at the, 308, 309 
Mara, Mdlle., vocalist, 204, 206, 209 
March, Lord, 64 
Margate, 65 ; a day at, 323 ; crowded 

state of, 335 
Marlborough, Duchess of, 191, 223 
Marlborough, Duke of, 43 
Marston, Mr., his bet, 185 
Martyr, Mrs., the actress, 190 
Masquerades, 215, 223 
Matrimonial advertisements, 301, 

302, 3°3. 304 
Matrimonial Magazine, the, 303 
Meat, high price of, 152 
Mechanic Theatre, 228 
Medicinal waters, 317 
Menageries, 309, 310 
Mendoza, the prize fighter, 274 
Men's dress, 50 
Merveilleux, the, 57 
Milford, Lord, 40 
Militia, 97, III, 112 
Millerd, vocalist, 209 
Milton Gailery (II. Fuseli's), 227, 

228 
Mohocks, 54 
Moira, Lord, 278 
Monetary, 232 et seq. 
Money and jewels, great find of, 

315.316 
"Monster, the," 247 to 261 
Montague, Mrs., the chimney 

sweeps' friend, 341, 342 
Moritz, Peter, 186 
Mount Edgcumbe, Lady, 177 
Munden, the actor, 189 
Muns, 54 

Musical composers, 207 
Mutiny in the navy, 37, 38, 39, 40, 

85, 86 
Mutton, price of, 151, 153 



352 



Index. 



N 



Napoleon I., 42, 47, 50 

"Natural History," 301 

Navy, ships commissioned, 8; press- 
ing for, 8, 9, 10, 19, 83, 84, 85 ; 
bounty for sailors, 20 ; strength 
of, 36 ; mutiny in, 37, 38, 39, 40 ; 
victory off Cape St. Vincent, 41 ; 
victory off Camperdown, 42 ; 
defeat of French off Lough 
Swilly, 46 ; battle of the Nile, 
46 ; treatment of seamen, 80 ; 
pressgang described by Smollet, 
81 ; mutiny on board the Cullo- 
den, 85, 86 ; recruiting for, 86, 
87 ; prize money, 87, 88 ; parishes 
raise men, 89, 90 ; mutilation to 
avoid service, 90, 91 ; a female 
sailor, 94 

Needlework, curious, 228 

Negro, elopement with, 268 

Newgate, number of prisoners there- 
in, 247 ; dancing party therein, 250 

Newland, Abraham, 36 

Newspapers, hire of, forbidden, 133 

New South Wales, colonization of, 1 

Nile, battle of the, 46 

Norfolk, Duke of, his dislike to 
water, 305 

Northumberland, Duchess of, 129 

Norwood, Gypsies at, 332 

Novels, 231 



O 



Oats, bruising of, 143 

Officers in the army, youth of, 

107, 108 
Opera, loud talking at, 211 
Opera and Ballet, 204 
Opium, taking, 331 
Orange, Prince of, 26 
Orrery, sale of Lord Bute's, 304 
Oxford (city of), 43 ; University 

print book for benefit of French 

clergy, 328 



Paget, Hon. Mr., 60, 61 
Palmer, the actor, 191 
Pantheon Theatre, 212, 215, 221 
Parishes raise men for the navy, 

89, 90 
Parisot, Mdlle., ballet dancer, 212, 

213 



Parker, Rd. (mutineer), 40 
Pasley, Admiral, 26 
Pastry, disuse of, 138, 139 
Patriotic gifts, 42, 43 
Paul's, St., procession to, 336 
Pavement, bad, 165, 166 
Pawnbrokers rates, 133, 134 
Peace, rumour of, 32 ; debate on, 

34 ; negotiations for, 35 ; failure 

of, 36 ; negotiations for, 42 
Peas, price of green, 153, 154, 322 
Peel, Mr., 43 

Penance, a butcher doing, 331 
Penny Post, 21, 119, 120 
Peterson, Lieut, (shot by Lord 

Camel ford), 92 
Phillips, Capt, first Governor of 

New South Wales, I 
Pidcock's Menagerie, 309 
Pillory, curious case, 247 
Piozzi, Mrs., 230 
Pitt, William, 5, 6, 13, 27, 32, 34, 



57,4i, 



5, 105, 131, 132, 



233, 234, 287 
Pluralists, 335 
Police and law, 243 
Politics, 280 to 292 
Poor, rules for the, 145 
Pope, the actor, 189, 190 
Pope, Mrs., the actress, 188, 190 
Popham, Captain, 93, 94 
Portland, Duke of, 29, 30, 33, 40, 

45. 131 

Portland estate, value of, 321 

Posting, 158 

Post Office, franking letters, 121, 

122, 123 ; rates for letters, 123 ; 

uniform for men, 124 
Potatoes, bounty for growing, 135 ; 

price of, 151 
Poultry, scarcity of, 138 
Pressing for the navy, 8, 9, 10, 81, 

82, 83, 84, 85 
Pretender, (Prince Charles Edward), 

death of, 3 
Priestley, Dr., 287 
Princesses, the Royal, 295 
Prisoners of war in France, 109, no 
Prize fighters, list of. 274 
Prize fighting, 273, 274 
Prize money, 87, 88 
Procession, Royal, to St. Paul's, 

336 
Promethean fire and phosphorus, 297 
Provisions, price of, 136 ; sugges- 
tions for economy, 142 
Public Houses, 134, 135, 



Index. 



353 



Publicans and pint pots, 327 ; and 

"showmen," 336 
Puff, a, 341 
Pulteney, Miss, coming of age, 297 



Q. 

Queensberry, Duke of, 6o, 185 
Quick, the actor, 171, 188 



R. 



Rain beau, a, 57 

Ramsgate, 325 

Rat's letter, the, 339 

Regrating, 150, 153 

Reinagle, P., 227 

Resurrection men, 262, 263, 264, 265 

Review of Volunteers in Hyde Park, 

48 
Rich, rules for the, 144 
" Ride, a delightful," 159 
Riding lessons, price of, 157 
Road, the, and streets, 157 
Robinson, Mrs., the actress, 192 
Rose, Miss, ballet dancer, 212, 213, 

214 
Ross, the hairdresser, 65 
Roulette, 173 

Royal family, domesticity of, 295 
" Royal George," loss of, 80 
Royalty, 293, 294, 295, 296 
Russell, Lord W., 61 
Russia, Emperor of, 93, 94 
Ryder, the actor, 188 



Sacrilege, 330 

St. George's Fields, kidnapping riots 

at, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 
St. Jean d'Acre, 47 
St. Paul's clock strikes wrongly, 318 
St. Vincent Cape, victory off, 41 
Sale of Government appointments, 

117, 118, 119 
Scarborough, Earl of, 54 
Scourers, 54 
Sea Kale, 154 
Sedition, see Politics 
September 14th (commencement of 

partridge shooting), 333 
Servants, fees to, 160 
Servants wages, &c, 115, 116, 117 



Seven shilling pieces, issue of, 239 
Sheep (Dishley), price of, 299 
"Shepherds, I have lost my waist," 72 
Sheridan, Richard Brinsley, 17, 196, 

202, 207 
Shield, W., musical composer, 207 
Shillings, bad, 240, 241, 242 
Shopmen, manners of, 314 
Siddons, Mrs., 189, 191, 196 
Silver, scarcity of, 235, 236, 237 
Skefhngton, Mr., 59 
Slave trade, abolition of, 11, 12, 20, 

27 
Smart, a, 55 
Smock Race, a, 322 
Social Economy, 114 
" Society, The," 218 
Sorocold, the engineer, 1S6 
Soup, consumption of, 136 
Spas, 317 
Spencer, a, 63, 64 
Spencer, Earl, 63 
Sportswoman, a, 344 
Spring guns set in a garden, 299 
Stage coaches, 163 
Stage wagon, 159 
Stanhope, Earl, 23-26 
Stationers Company, dinner at the, 

146 
Statue of George III. at Pall Mall, 

49 
Storace, S., musical composer, 207, 

208 
Storace, Signora, the vocalist, 196, 

197, 205 
Storm, destructive, 32 
Story, a " tall," 301 
Strathmore, Earl of, 185 
Sturt, Mrs., 167, 169, 172, 179 
Suett, Rd., 187, 199 
Sussex, Duke of, 225 



Talbot, Miss, (the female sailor), 94 

Talleyrand, 50 

Telegraph, the, 124, 125, 126, 127, 

128 
Thames, embankment, 327 ; tunnel 

under, 340 
Thames frozen, 4, 266 
Thanksgiving for the king's recovery 

from illness, 7 
Theatre, the,. 187 
Theatres, private, 201 
Thelwall, John, 23 

Z 



354 



Index. 



Thrale, Mrs., 230 

Thurlow, Lord, 2, 6, 30, 196 

Titiretus, 54 

Tooke, Rev. John Home, 23 

Topaz, a cheap, 298 

Townsend, (Bow street runner), 196, 

245 
Trinity Square first named, 340 
Tunnel under the Thames, 340 
Twopenny pieces, issue of, 239 
Tythes, story respecting, 319 



U 

Umbrellas, 55 
University, choice of a, 338 



Vaccination, 338 
Varieties, 297 to end 
Villiers, Lord, 61 
Vinegar Hill, battle of, 45 
Volunteers, 24, 48, 49, 95, 96, 98, 

Vortigern and Rowena, 202 

W 

Wake, Kidd, 32, 33 

Wales, Prince of, 2, 5-7, 33, 51, 

169, 194, 196, 209, 215, 216, 274, 

293, 294, 295, 296 
Wales, Princess of, 76, 293, 294, 

295. 3H 



Waltz, the, 321 

Warren, Sir John Borlase, 46 

Watchmen, 243, 244 

Waters, medicinal, 317 

Water wheels at London Bridge, 

185, 186 
Wells, Mrs., the actress, 190 
Westmoreland, Lord, 30, 31 
Wheat, bounty on, 28 ; cheapness 

of, 34; scarcity of, 135; rise in 

price, 138 
Whist, 180 

Whitbread, Samuel, 24 
Wife selling, 342, 343 
Wilberforce, William, II, 12, 20, 

27 
Wilkes, John, 311 
Williams, Renwick (the Monster), 

247 to 261 
Willis, Dr., 4, 61 
Willis's Rooms, 224 
Willoughby de Broke, Lord, 60 
Windsor uniform, 64 
Wines, price of, 155 
Women's dress, 69 
Worcester, Marquis of, 125 
Wormholt Scrubs, nuisance on, 330 



X YZ 

Yanievitz, the actor, 198 
York, Cardinal, 3 
York, Duchess of, 70, 295 
York, Duke of, 2, 6, 20, 1 07, 256, 
277. 295 



THE END. 



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